Closed restaurants, panic buying and working from home have all contributed to the nation using their homes differently and the kitchen is no exception.
Research undertaken by Hoover has revealed increased demand for ovens (30%), washing machines (24%), hobs (24%) and fridge freezers (22%), which have all been used more during lockdown.
Overall we’re using our fridge freezers (22%), ovens (15%) and hobs (11%) most often and wishing for dishwashers (19%), tumble dryers (9%) and wine coolers (4%) most of all when we don’t have such an appliance .
Top of the ‘appliance wish list’ was dishwashers (9%), an appliance that just half of the nation has in their home (51%). Existing research undertaken by Hoover reported that 63% of people always washed by hand** and it was the third least-favourite chore (behind ironing and dusting).
Wine coolers have been used more during lockdown too and came third in the ‘appliance wish list’, with 4% of respondents reporting to have wished for one during lockdown.
An interesting skew to come out from the research was that whilst 52% of the nation own a tumble dryer, just 6% of people are using theirs more, and yet it came out second in the ‘appliance wish list’ among those who don’t have one (9%). Perhaps that’s due to the warm weather we’ve been having in the UK and that people have been at home, so have been able to line-dry their laundry.
Steve Macdonald, business director – freestanding division at Hoover, said: “During lockdown things haven’t been as readily available as they once were, so we have and are adapting to a new way of life.
“People are cooking more, batch-meal prepping and may have had to change their grocery shopping habits as well, so they are using their ovens, hobs, microwaves, fridges and freezers and dishwashers more and differently, too.
“There was a surge in demand for freezers in February and March*** as people needed the capacity to store their frozen goods as they ‘stocked up’ prior to the lockdown announcement. And people have changed their washing habits too, doing on average 6% less laundry loads per week****.
“As we begin to take the steps towards a new norm, we’re going to continue to monitor usage of our smart appliances closely to garner invaluable insights into what, when and how they are used and take that into account for future products.”
For information about Hoover’s innovative appliances, please visit www.hoover.co.uk or @Hoover_UK on Twitter.
Sources: All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2,133 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 15th – 17th May 2020. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+)
** Hoover Innovation Report – July 2018
*** Mintel Major Domestic Appliance: inc impact of Covid-19 UK – April 2020
**** European usage data based on 70,000 appliances from Haier Europe
