Report Overview
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This study analyzes the US market for home organization products. This includes purchases made by consumers, including those intended for use in self-storage facilities. Garage cabinets are included only if they are part of a garage modular system.
Sales of products to self-storage facility operators and any other nonresidential end users are not included. Also excluded are:
conventional cabinets, including kitchen cabinets with open shelving
food storage products
furniture, including outdoor furniture and bookcases
laundry baskets
office products
preinstalled accessories
tool storage
waste baskets and recycle bins
Office products are also excluded from this study, as it is difficult to know the final end use for these items. However, products that turn non-office rooms into multifunctional spaces would fall into the scope.
Sales of for home organization products is examined by product and market in US dollars at the manufacturers’ level, unless noted otherwise (as in the Retail Sales vs. Manufacturers’ Sales section). Historical data for 2010, 2015, and 2020 and forecasts for 2025 and 2030 are presented in current dollars (which are not adjusted to account for inflation).
Sales data are presented by product, material, room, and installation type.
Products are discussed in terms of:
bins, baskets, and totes
shelving
modular units (e.g., closet and garage organization kits or systems) and various components (e.g., cubes, drawers, bins, open racks, shelves, and rods)
hanging storage
accessories and hardware (e.g., drawer and shelf dividers, hooks, jewelry tray inserts, lazy susans, pull-out drawers, slatwall and pegboard, valet rods)
Material segments include:
metal and wire, including plastic coated wire
plastic
wood and laminate, including solid wood and laminate-covered engineered wood
wicker, rattan, and other natural weaves, such as hyacinth, seagrass, and bamboo
textiles and other materials (e.g., canvas, vinyl, glass)
Rooms are segmented by:
closets (e.g., master, bedroom, hall, linen, coat)
garages
family rooms (e.g., formal living rooms, media centers, dens, playrooms, recreation rooms)
kitchens and pantries
bedrooms
utility rooms, basements, and attics (e.g., laundry rooms, mudrooms, craft rooms)
outdoor areas (e.g., decks, porches, outdoor kitchens, patios, barns, hobby greenhouses, sheds)
bathrooms
Installation segments are do-it-yourself (DIY) and professional. In addition, retail sales are discussed by retail channel:
mass merchant and discount stores, including mass merchandisers, membership club stores, dollar stores, and closeout stores
home centers and hardware stores (e.g., national home improvement chains, national hardware chains, independent retailers)
specialty channels
home décor, housewares, and furniture stores
non-store retailing from manufacturer websites
specialty internet sites
catalogs
TV home shopping channels
other outlets (e.g., department stores, fabric and craft stores, supermarkets, drug stores)
Product Types
Sales of home organization products are expected to advance 2.1% annually to $13.5 billion in 2025. While all products are expected to continue to grow through the forecast period, modular systems will see the largest absolute gains. Modular units will find additional opportunities for growth as they are used in increasingly diverse applications. Accessories and hardware sales will also benefit from their use in a growing number of modular systems, as well as to help the functionality of current consumer spaces like kitchens and pantries.
Bins, baskets, and totes account for the largest share of sales, representing 34% of sales in 2020. Gains will result from sales of textile baskets, which are higher value elements that are increasingly popular as attractive organization additions to shelving or modular systems.
Installation Trends (DIY vs. Professional Installation)
Sales of home organization products are expected to rise 2.1% per year, to $13.5 billion in 2025.
DIY installation spiked in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which spurred consumers to undertake more projects with their additional time at home. Consumers used funds that were originally intended for travel or activities outside the home for home improvement. Furthermore, consumers, at least initially in the pandemic, were wary of letting professionals into their homes due to the potential spread of the virus. This surge in demand in 2020 caused the DIY segment to outpace the professional segment over the historical period.
Through 2025, however, sales of professionally installed products are expected to outpace DIY products, increasing 4.1% per year, compared to 1.7% per year for DIY products. DIY products, or products that are not professionally installed, accounted for 83% of sales in 2020. This share was relatively identical to the share of DIY products in 2015, an indication of the effects of the pandemic. While the share of DIY products is expected to fall through 2025, the majority of gains will continue to result from this large segment, given that many products do not need to be installed professionally and DIY versions of products, like ready-to-assemble items, are widely available.
Housing Stock & Number of Rooms
The number of housing units in the US is projected to rise less than 1.0% per year through 2025 to 146 million units, a marginally slower pace than that achieved from 2015 to 2020. Formation of new households will support further increases in new housing construction through 2025.
Growth in the total number of bedrooms is expected to mirror gains in the US housing stock, while bathrooms are expected to outpace housing stock growth, rising 1.2% per year to 276 million in 2025. Overall, continued gains in the US housing stock, as well as the rooms that make up a typical US home, will provide additional sales opportunities for manufacturers of home organization products.
While rooms are expected to grow relatively consistently with housing stock, square footage for new residential homes is expected to increase through 2025, marking a shift from the historical period. Additional space in homes will also lead to more opportunities for home organization product sales.
VIDEO
Sales of home organization products are forecast to grow 2.1% per year from an elevated 2020 level through 2025, reaching $13.5 billion. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a significant shift in the way people live and shop for products. Home organization product sales spiked as consumers looked for ways to facilitate changes in how they use their spaces. While some of these trends were already in progress prior to 2020, they were heightened by the pandemic:
The need for multifunctional spaces increased, as a large percentage of the population began to work and learn from home.
E-commerce sales surged as many consumers reduced their in-person shopping in order to avoid crowds and reduce their chances of infection.
DIY projects rose in popularity, temporarily pausing a trend toward more professional installations.
While sales of home organization products are expected to remain high in 2021, the spike in 2020 will slow overall gains through 2025 as the market is expected to cool somewhat.
E-Commerce Has Grown Rapidly & Is Likely to Maintain Its Share of Sales Going Forward
Prior the pandemic, e-commerce sales of home organizational goods were growing steadily on a yearly basis, supported in part by the improved websites and sales interfaces offered by retailers and suppliers. Furthermore, suppliers were increasingly deploying online design tools to allow customers to plan their projects, like modular system installations.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic caused massive growth in e-commerce sales, overwhelming the supply chain and making it difficult for companies to plan inventory. While it is expected that consumers will return to greater reliance on in-store shopping, use of e-commerce will continue to grow due to its convenience and the greater selection of products available at consumers’ fingertips. Smaller retailers in particular can benefit from developing their online presence.
Professional Installations Expected to Outpace DIY Sales Through 2025
Although sales of home organization products that were installed by consumers saw more robust gains in 2020 than those professionally installed, professional sales are expected to outpace DIY sales through the forecast period:
Consumers, presented with more time at home in 2020, undertook home improvement projects partly with funds normally allocated to travel or entertainment outside the home.
This was a shift from pre-pandemic patterns, which saw the DIFM (do-it-for-me) trend of consumers opting to hire a professional to do home projects.
Looking forward, however, professional sales are again expected to grow at an above average rate, due in part to the continued rise of higher value modular systems installed in homes.