GERMANY – Who would have thought that on average we spend over 300 hours in the bathroom each year? This has been revealed by Hettich’s new market research study. In recent years domestic bathrooms have increasingly moved away from being places to wash in and become feel-good havens of relaxation. 

The bathroom segment is also speaking of a modernization backlog in bathrooms.

This has prompted Hettich to focus close attention on the bathroom. Not only with its own market research study and trend analyses but also in the form of innovation workshops with national and international bathroom manufacturers and newly developed furniture ideas for the bathroom which were showcased at Interzum 2015.

In Hettich’s market research study 241 respondents gave the fittings manufacturer a glimpse inside their bathrooms at home. The study shows that the average household has two bathrooms, of which 42 per cent are between 4 and <8 sq.m. in size and 48 per cent between >8 and 12 sq.m. Generally speaking, the persons interviewed spend approximately 50 minutes a day in the bathroom. This lengthy amount of time makes the bathroom a space which is gaining significant importance in terms of furnishing and outfit.

Over 40 per cent of respondents said their bathrooms were more than ten years old. Accordingly, over 20 per cent are planning to modernize their bathrooms in the next two years. As a bathroom ranks relatively high on the respondents’ list of priorities, over 40 per cent are prepared to spend at least €10,000 on modernizing them. However, in 75 per cent of cases only up to €1600 will be going on bathroom furniture.

Asked what they disliked most about their current bathroom, they pointed to insufficient storage space, the room itself being too small, untidiness and lack of organization as well as attraction of dirt. The respondents have only two drawers in their bathrooms, even though attributes like “functional”, “clearly organized storage” and “everything to hand” were among the five most important criteria in the bathroom.

In line with these findings, the respondents’ dream bathroom looks like this: a spacious, modern, easy clean, bright oasis of well being with a bath and large floor level shower and, above all, practical storage for the many things that need storing in the bathroom. Today, cosmetics and care products, hair utensils, the hair drier and cleaning equipment are the items most likely to be kept in closed storage spaces. But the respondents would also like to see more space in closed cabinets in particular for storing towels, other cleaning utensils, toilet paper, cosmetics and medicines.

Although 65 per cent of the respondents stated they would gather information from the Internet when planning a new bathroom, 62 per cent would also seek advice from a bathroom retailer.

Accordingly at Interzum 2015, Hettich showed creative furniture ideas for the bathroom. Standard fittings were chosen which can be used to produce bathroom furniture with a highly individual look – a good way for bathroom furniture manufacturers to stand apart from their competitors.