Handy Men at Your Service Ladies!
The example of Tony Micelli, the protagonist of the famous American sitcom “Who’s the boss” seems to know a lot about success in France. With the struggling competition among service providers, companies have to innovate when drawing up their strategies. As a result, some businesses do not hesitate to market the “handymen” talent at do-it-yourself gardening or plumbing, by targeting mostly female customers.
For various reasons, more and more women live on their own. Those who live as a couple sometimes have a spouse who does not like the “do-it-yourself” attitude or one who does not have time for it. Assembling furniture, putting up curtain rails, repairing a chair, or clipping the fence, all these may seem like simple tasks. Yet lonely women do not always dare to ask for help from their friends or family.
Until a few years ago, this kind of need was neglected by some service providers, but others have seized this windfall. Everyday life services, which are generally charged between €30 and €50, have led to a boom of the turnover among businesses which chose to cater to this niche, such as Papa Bricole (“Daddy does DIY”) or Mari à Louer (“Husband to let”).
Of course, even though most of the customers are women, this does not mean that men are left aside! Indeed, they still represent 20% of the demand, so do not be ashamed to ask for help in simple tasks. Some providers have also extended their offer towards small businesses, which cannot afford employing someone just for maintenance. In the same way, the sector either is not closed for female workers because the engineer may sometimes be a woman as well!
So Ladies, don’t feel like you don’t have any help around the house anymore!