By Clementine Hall

With the UK a month into it’s third lockdown (yep, third) we are no longer scrambling to bulk-buy toilet roll and frantically baking banana bread; instead many of us have adapted to our homebound lifestyles and our shopping habits clearly reflect this.

Unsurprisingly, recent sales data shows that spending on home goods is 3,000 times higher in some cases than last year. And with the humble bicycle ranking as the most bought item on Gumtree, which items have made it to the top of your shopping lists?

1. Plants

Indoor plants

Sales of plants in 2020 were up by 79% in comparison to 2019.

Although filling your room with greenery isn’t the same as roaming the great outdoors, for those with limited outdoor space creating an indoor garden is the next best thing.

2. Office Furniture

Home office

With many of us having to work from home, adapting our living spaces into a work area is crucial to achieving maximum productivity. It’s also an excuse to buy some new furniture.

During one week in May, John Lewis reported a 44% increase in sales of desks and a whopping 91% increase in office chairs.

3. Gym Kit

Gym equipment

The closure of gyms means that we’ve all had to find alternative ways to stay fit.

Many people have been rolling out of bed to join in with the Joe Wicks workouts with a record breaking 1 million people tuning in for his 9am live fitness classes.

Unsurprisingly, home gym equipment has spiked by a massive 5813% since the UK first went into lockdown.

4. Make-up

Makeup

With Zoom calls taking over our lives, the obvious priority is to spend all our money on looking more ‘camera ready’ right?

Colourful eyeshadow palette sales are up 57% whilst self tanning products are up by 41% since March. After all, we all deserve a bit of self care during these difficult times.

5. Jigsaw Puzzles

Jigsaw

Bored of watching TV? Why not spend your time on a good old fashioned jigsaw puzzle, which will not only entertain you but will also give you that momentary sense of accomplishment until you have to destroy it and put it back in the box.

Figures show that UK sales of jigsaw puzzles reached 100 million in 2020 with manufacturers selling out in the spring and just before Christmas.  With consumers being mostly adults rather than children, is puzzling now the new socialising?

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