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Coronavirus And The Hot Tub And Above-Ground Pool Industry: An Honest Assessment Of What’s Coming

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Really, the coronavirus isn’t a good thing. It is not something any of us are excited about. It’s impact on individual health, as well as the world economy, is indeed a tough pill to swallow. Over the past week, many of our customers and members of our dealer network have asked us what this virus is going to do to hot tub and pool retailers as well as manufacturers for 2020 and beyond.

One thing we are seeing is a huge increase in interest for both hot tubs and above ground pools.  Schools are closed, the kids are home and may not be going back to school until September.  People are forced to stay home and to self isolate which is causing considerable stress for some.  What are they going to do?  People are already looking ahead.  The concern over going somewhere is very real and travel plans are being cancelled; the borders of most countries are closed and we have no idea when they will reopen. Thus the introduction of the Staycation.

WHAT IS A STAYCATION?

In simple terms, a staycation is when an individual or family, instead of spending their discretionary income on travel, flights or cruises – invest these funds into their home and oftentimes into their backyard.

In many cases, this leads to increased construction and purchases of luxury items like swimming pools, hot tubs, etc. as people cocoon in their own space.

Now you may be thinking to yourself, “This makes sense, but if the economy is in such bad shape, no one will have the money to purchase a hot tub or above ground pool.

In certain situations, yes, this will be the case.

But here is the thing that all will soon realize with respect to coronavirus—life must go on.

We’ll all still have mouths to feed, bills to pay, businesses to run, and lives to live

And once the initial panic runs its course over the coming weeks, most will have a much clearer idea on where things are, with the eventual outcome likely being one of two things:

  1. some type of cure/vaccination/etc.
  2. We have a new normal—a stronger type of “flu” that elevates awareness and health standards every year going forward, meaning we all wash our hands a heck of a lot more and take precautions where necessary.

As I mentioned at the beginning, people are already looking ahead and recognizing that travel may not be in the cards over the next year, which means a shift in spending.

We have seen this before during the last recession when the Canadian dollar was in the tank and people turned to what became known as cocooning. The difference this time is it is not optional – it is mandatory, but we will get through it and I believe we will come out better for it.

OPPORTUNITIES AND MORE

Hopefully, we’ll be able to turn this around quickly but in the meantime business owners have the opportunity to scrutinize their businesses and pare down the fat.  To take this time to streamline operations and determine what is really important and focus on those things.

Things like:

  • Customer satisfaction
  • Job proficiency
  • Building and improving on skills
  • Staff and personal education

Is this going to be a rough time? Yes!  But we can put our heads in the sand and say its not happening or face reality with a smile on our face and take this time to get better and be better.  So don’t sit in front of the TV listening to the doom and gloom … get excited … and get going.  Make a plan and start working that plan. As Ben Franklin said “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!” Because when this is over – and it will end – you want to still be standing. At Sundance Spas of Edmonton we are excited to run with a plan.

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