英國人家裝DIY興趣減退 省下時間去旅遊

Britons' love affair with DIY is waning, research suggests.

While Bank Holidays were traditionally a time when people looked to get on with home improvements, a study indicates that people would rather employ someone else to do the work.

Analysts found that two million of us have abandoned DIY over the past two years.

The slump in interest has been partly caused by declining skills among young people and the rise in popularity of ready-to-assemble flat-pack furniture.

However, it is not just the younger generation who are turning their backs on domestic manual chores. The report, by market analysts Mintel, found that the number of people aged from 45 to 54 who occupy their time with DIY has halved in two years from 30 per cent to just 15 per cent.

The study found that people increasingly prefer to spend the money on travel and relaxation rather than slaving away at tasks around the house.

Neil Mason, a Mintel spokesman, said: "DIY retailers have been losing share of all retail sales because of the ageing population being less inclined to do DIY, the growth of a do-it-for-me market, and a change in attitudes to the home.

"There has been a perceptible shift in consumer priorities away from the home and towards leisure – particularly holidays and fashion."

一項調查顯示，英國人對自己動手搞家裝的興趣正在逐漸減退。

過去，英國人喜歡趁着公共假日自己動手搞搞家裝，但一項調查顯示，如今人們更傾向於僱人來幹這種活。

分析人士發現，在過去兩年中，兩百萬的英國人不再自己動手搞家裝。

對DIY興趣的減退一部分是因爲年輕人的動手能力下降，另一方面是因爲組裝傢俱的流行。

然而，不光是年輕人不愛幹這些活。敏特市場分析機構的調查報告顯示，年齡在45歲到54歲之間自己動手搞家裝的人在兩年之內減少了一半，比例從30%降至15%。

調查發現，如今人們越來越喜歡花錢去旅遊和休閒，而不是待在家裏做家務。

敏特公司的發言人尼爾•梅森說：“DIY行業的零售商們正逐漸失去市場，因爲年齡大的人越來越不願意自己動手，‘爲我做’市場正在興起，人們對家的態度也發生了變化。

“消費者的消費傾向發生了顯著轉變，已從過去的家居轉向休閒——尤其是度假和時尚。”

Vocabulary:

flat-pack furniture:組裝傢俱

slave away: 如奴隸般工作，苦幹（My mother has been slaving away all weekend in the kitchen. 整個週末，我母親一直在廚房裏忙碌。）