Power drills, by the numbers

Channel analysis

Consumer research from The NPD Group shows that after a slight sales dip in the 12 months ended July 2011, the drills category has seen a boost back to levels above those of two years ago. Dollar volume from August to July rose 8.4%, with most dollars overall (61.9%) spent in warehouse home centers.

Product attributes

Driven by ever-improving battery technology, the majority of drills sold in the 12 months ended July were cordless drills, but sales of corded products have seen an uptick over the past two years.

Demographic analysis

Based on the data, the typical purchaser of a power drill in the past 12 months is 18 to 34 years old, lives in the South, earns less than $30,000 a year and is definitely a male (77.2% versus 22.8%).

Purchase motivators

Power drills are one of the few categories in which brand beats price by a wide margin as a reason for purchase. But as a reason to shop a particular retailer, price remains a top motivator.

Methodology: NPD data are based on monthly tracking of more than 30 home improvement-related categories and 30,000 opt-in consumers.

*2012 data reflects the period August 2011 through July 2012.

**Key: WHC: warehouse home center; MM: mass merchant; DS: department store;

             SS: specialty store; HS: hardware store

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