Speakers are positive about outlook for the global market, whilst nearly a quarter of delegates estimate growth of more than 10% for their business this year.

The fifth Global DIY Summit drew a record 1,000 delegates, including attendees from over 320 of the top retailers from around the world. Delegates travelled from 55 countries to participate in this year’s event, which took place at the Maritim Hotel in Berlin on June 8-10.

Initial feedback has been extremely positive, with 81% of delegates describing the event as ‘excellent’ or ’very good’ using a voting tool on the final day, meaning the Summit has voted the best-ever event to date.

The motto of this year’s event was “A New Era – A Glimpse into the Future of Home Improvement”. A host of international speakers gave strong presentations on a wide variety of topics, including digital platforms as new business models, the political and economic forecasts after Trump Presidency and Brexit, how a company should start its own digital transformation, as well as a global overview of home improvement stores around the world.

The general perception of global economy was positive and most of the speakers forecast more innovation and growth within the next years.

This year over 30% of the Summit’s audience were retailers – a big increase compared with the congress held in Stockholm last year. Suppliers are still the largest group attending, with approximately 57% of the delegates listed as manufacturers.

Delegates were also asked for their expectations for their business development for this year compared with last year. Nearly a quarter of delegates (21%) were optimistic and estimated growth of more than 10%.

Around 39% of the audience was more cautious, as they forecast growth of between 0% and 4%. Approximately 22 % of suppliers predicted that they will grow more than 10% compared to last year, while 20% of the retailers forecast the same growth.

The industry still seems to be sceptical regarding the shift from bricks and mortar into online retailing, as 22% of the total delegates think that online sales shares in DIY in five years will be less than 10%. Almost 30% of the audience predicted a range between 10% and 15%. Even more interesting is that 18% of the delegates forecast more than 25%.

The next Global DIY Summit will be held in Barcelona from June 13-14 2018.