Anthracite Grey has been one of the most successful colours in our industry over the past decade – in both the PVCu and aluminium parts of our market. Its origins come from a type of coal known for being shiny and very tough. But it has become a very popular colour for both exterior and interior home improvements.

But have we peaked? The more I look back at our own order intake this year, as well as the general commentary for the sector, I think we might have.

Peak Anthracite Grey

The sales of Anthracite Grey grew year after year for a significant period of time. It was synonymous with aluminium bi-folding doors when they were exploding onto the scene, and jumped quickly to aluminium and PVCu windows. Homeowners saw it as incredibly fashionable and quickly became the must-have colour for new windows and doors.

One concern I always had was whether everyone choosing Anthracite Grey had truly thought about their property before taking the plunge. On some homes, it looks great, especially against a light-coloured render or stone where there is a nice contrast between the two. But I have seen Anthracite Grey used on other types of homes, such as dark red brick properties and it just does not have the same impact. As such, Anthracite Grey will very likely date quicker on some homes than others.

I took to X and LinkedIn to ask the followers of DGB if, in their opinions, we have reached peak Anthracite Grey. My audiences on both platforms are slightly different, but they produced fairly similar results:

The DGB poll on LinkedIn garnered more interaction and had the most comprehensive “yes” answer to the question of whether sales of Anthracite Grey have peaked.

I think we can take from that, and the general noise around the colour is that we have probably reached the height of sales for Anthracite Grey. Personally, I think this is a good thing. We were at risk of grossly overselling it into a lot of homes that would not be best suited to it, or else risk homeowners regretting their colour choice just a few years down the line.

Black is the new Black?

They say that the two colours that never age or date are Black and White, and on the former, I can say I have personally sold a lot more Black this year than in previous years.

I feel as though homeowners are now reverting back to tried and tested colours which are better suited to a wider variety of homes. Also, the rapid rise in steel-look windows and doors, which were predominantly Black, is helping to supercharge sales of Black in both the PVCu and aluminium parts of the market.

But it’s not only Black. Heritage colours such as Agate Grey, French Grey, Cream and others are also being sold in bigger volumes. Homeowners are becoming more educated about the range of colour choices in the market now and better understand what works and what doesn’t. Add to that, Heritage colours age as well.

As we head quickly into a new year, I believe we will see a continued surge in sales of Black aluminium and PVCu products. We will see sales of Anthracite Grey continue to slide and colours such as Agate Grey and French Grey grow further.

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