Executive Summary

This report covers the market for showers, enclosures, screens and trays, in addition to the market for shower accessories such as curtains, shampoo and soap dispensers. Shower types include instantaneous electric showers, mixer units and power showers. Estimates of the size of the retail market for showers in 1993 vary between £210m and £230m, while retail sales of shower screens, enclosures and trays vary between £80m and £100m.

It is difficult to quantify the manufacturing side of the shower sector, since there are no official figures available. In terms of installation, over two-thirds of shower installations are carried out by plumbers. In 1993, there were around 14,550 plumbing firms in the UK, employing approximately 28,000 employees.

The average household uses 23.8 litres of water per person per day on bathing and showering, representing 17% of total household water usage. In 1993, 54% of all UK households had a shower fitment, compared to 41% in 1988.

As the water demand in the UK has risen, the supply has proved increasingly pressured, compounded by falling reservoir levels due to a number of dry seasons. Currently, the water companies are considering three new options of charging for water: flat-rate charges/licence fees, stepped charges and metering. Ofwat (the Office of Water Services) advocates the installation of a water meter where it is easy and cheap to install, for example, in a brand new property and where water resources are scarce. The number of households with water meters in England and Wales totalled 657,000 in 1992/1993, representing 3.4% of the total households with water supply. The installation of a water meter is considered to be a major driver for shower installation.

Although specialist shower manufactures dominate the UK shower sector, most companies supplying bathroom and kitchen equipment include shower products in the brochures. Shower accessories are produced both by the specialist bathroom and shower manufacturers and by companies specialising in household textiles. The two leading shower manufacturers are Triton PLC and Caradon Mira Ltd, which together account for 49% of total volume sales.

Retail sales of showers and shower accessories are predicted to increase slowly during 1994, with replacement products continuing to account for the bulk of sales. Instantaneous electric showers, in particular, are expected to continue to see good growth, although power showers are also likely to prove popular.

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