Working in today’s home improvement industry looks very different than it did five years ago. (Did you think you’d hear this much about Zoom meetings one year ago?) While the industry might look different, some things remain the same: This year’s HIRI Summitis sure to delight our attendees. 

But the benefits of attending the HIRI’s 2020 Virtual Summit are greater because this year ... the event is entirely free. 

What’s Next for Home Improvement: Three Big Ideas

Each Fall, home improvement thought leaders and stakeholders come together in Chicago to dig into challenges facing the industry and pull out actionable insights. We walked away from the 2019 edition of the annual Home Improvement Insights Summit with three big ideas:

The last week of September brought in not only the fall, but the largest HIRI event to date, the 2019 HIRI Summit. The annual event held in downtown Chicago brought together industry insiders, thought leaders and some of the largest stakeholders in home improvement and remodeling to discuss current trends, the economic environment, and actionable insights.

There will more coverage of the Summit in coming weeks, but in the meantime, here are some of the top insights.

• The fundamentals of the home improvement market are strong, and housing stock and homeowner make-up are favorable in keeping the market strong. - Nino Sitchinava, Houzz
  
  
• Discretionary luxury remodeling is slowing with the five product categories facing most severe headwinds: High end cabinets, cladding, flooring, roofing and dimensional lumber. - Todd Tomalak, John Burns Real Estate Consulting
  
  
• Do not underestimate the effects that trade wars have on “bystander” countries and industries—firms can and have paid dearly for assuming they will be unaffected simply because their supply chains and/or end products are not being directly targeted. - David Logan, NAHB
  
  
• It is important to measure the impact the weather has on your business, and you CAN do something about the weather — both in the planning process and during the selling season — to increase sales, minimize costs, and enhance profit. - Scott Bernhardt, Planalytics
  
  
• For home improvement, the shopper’s journey is not just ‘where do I find this?’ but more importantly ‘how do I do this?’ making the role of the associate critical. - Amy Anthony, Lowe's
  
  
• Shopping and purchasing via mobile device is growing rapidly and must be a main strategy at retail. - Brendan Baby, The Home Depot
  
  
• Breaking barriers to entry online requires creative solutions such as how to bring the ‘touch & feel’ from the store into the home, expanding delivery options, reducing shipping expenses, reversing a bad return experience, and capturing the customer’s attention early during their research phase to avoid cart abandonment. - Leen Nsouli, The NPD Group
  
  
• Gen Z is a DIFFERENT generation than Millennials. They look like no other youth generation before. They value pragmatism and security as they embark on changing the world. - Therese Caruso, Zeno Group
  
  
• 80% of organizations expect to compete mainly based on CX this year – Experience-led businesses have higher customer retention, return on spend and higher customer satisfaction rates. - Michele Booth, IPSOS
  
  
• When you talk about sustainability as it relates to home improvement purchases, savings is not an effective message. Try to tie the benefit to health, and give Americans prescriptive steps to take to make it happen. - Suzanne Shelton, Shelton Group.

Join the Brightest Minds in Home Improvement This Fall

As a home improvement industry specialist, you crave high-level and granular insights developed by and for category pros. This September, immerse yourself in an intimate, custom-built setting for thought leaders and change makers working within a unique yet massive space.

Each year, hundreds of home improvement industry experts and professionals gather to network, share research and explore upcoming trends and forecasts at the Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI) Insights Summit. “HIRI has evolved over the last three to five years with good leadership,” said Diane Walsh, vice president of market development and sales at ShurTech and HIRI president. “This year’s conference promises to be the best yet.”

Content delivered at September’s HIRI Insights Summit will fall under three pillars:

If you’re interested in staying ahead of home improvement industry trends, one of the best ways is spending a couple of days learning and sharing with like-minded industry professionals.

Past speaker and frequent attendee Grant Farnsworth, director of business development at The Farnsworth Group, caught up with us to share why he thinks the Insights Conference is a can’t-miss event for home improvement industry professionals.

Want to stay ahead of the curve? If so, join us in Chicago September 18-19 for the HIRI Insights Conference — but don’t just take our word for it.

If you specialize in home and building products, the insights packed into short videos from economists, researchers and thought leaders may help drive your business. Videos feature experts from Houzz, Nielsen, Harvard University and many others featured as speakers at the Home Improvement Research Institute Insights Conference. WATCH NOW

Want to stay ahead of the curve in the home improvement industry? Sometimes, spending a few days with like-minded industry pros and peers is the best way to succeed.

Industry leaders from across the country gathered at the HIRI 2017 Insights Conference in Chicago. The event, hosted annually by the Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI), featured speakers from Harvard University, HomeAdvisor, J.D. Power and Associates, Kantar Retail, Nielsen and more.