AllHome Corporation reported growth in sales of appliances and furniture during the second quarter as people spent more for their houses while locked down during the quarantine period.

Despite the ill effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on shopper spending, AllHome said it capitalized on the silver lining behind the challenges posed by varying levels of community quarantines—increased market interest in home appliances and essential items.

AllHome Vice Chairman Camille Villar noted that, the company’s wide range of products contributed significantly to sales growth, despite the imposition of a modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) and general community quarantine (GCQ) in most of AllHome’s areas of operation.

“During the second quarter of this year, appliances contributed 40 percent ofour sales, generated by our tactical pop-up stores placed near All Day Supermarkets. We recognized and capitalized on our AllValue retail ecosystem, of which AllHome is an integral part,” she said.

As the country moved to a more relaxed GCQ,AllHome’s sales saw improvement, with shoppers resuming home projects and select businesses started reopening.

Due to the pandemic, shoppers had a surplus of time at home, and their respective incomes were diverted from travel and non-essential entertainment to renovations and passion projects.

This time presented opportunities to continue and start DIY (do-it-yourself) home improvement projects, while others bought new kitchen appliances to further culinary hobbies and refrigerator and freezers to assist their business ventures.

Some purchased air conditioners to make their homes cool and comfortable at the height of summer during the second quarter.

With the new normal of work from home arrangements and online classes, AllHome saw an increase in sales of furniture and equipment for home office and virtual classes.

These shifts in shopper behavior cushioned somehow the disruption caused by the pandemic such as closure of stores and stoppage of construction activities during the ECQ.

As reported in the shopper survey commissioned by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the upper-middle economic class priority levels on home furnishing remained the same—both online and in-store.

“This community lockdown has pushed AllHome to find new channels to bring its products and services closer to its customers.” said AllValue Holdings Chairman Manuel B. Villar, Jr.

AllHome has introduced four ways for to shop for home and hardware needs while still ensuring safety of its customers: online shopping via allhomeclick.com, through a personal shopper via AllHome’s Viber Community, and chat and order from AllHome Builders Centre Shopping Community for specific construction and hardware needs.