Australia’s home renovation market is expected to grow into a $48 billion industry by the end of 2025, marking an impressive 13% surge compared to the previous year. Nowadays, many homeowners choose to upgrade their property rather than relocate to a new house. As a result, in order to complete the renovation process without unnecessary hassle, homeowners need to properly prepare for it by buying all needed materials and finding an experienced contractor on time.
KPMG analysis reveals a fundamental change in Australians’ housing approach. Over the past five years, renovation spending has grown by 6.5%, while new private residential construction has plummeted by 14%. According to the analysis, the total renovation spending climbed from 34.2% of total residential construction in 2018-19 to 40% in 2023-24.
The Lexity team analysed hardware stores and home repair services across 37 major Australian cities and revealed vital differences in the availability of both big store chains and independent businesses. The analysis examines how many households are served per store in cities, depending on the population and the number of services available within the area. The bigger the number of households served by one store, the less accessible the service becomes for the local population of a specific city.
Key Findings
- Melbourne hardware stores serve 7,716 households each, compared to Shepparton’s 553 households per store, creating a 14-fold difference between Australia’s biggest city and best-served regional centre.
- All major capitals are proving to have the busiest hardware stores, with Melbourne, Sydney, Wollongong, Brisbane, and Warrnambool recording the five highest households-per-store ratios nationwide.
- Shepparton showcases 553 households per hardware store and 299 households per repair service- the least busy stores in Australia.
- Regional areas average 954 households per repair service, compared to major cities’ 6,726 households per service, which represents a major availability within the area.
- Western Australia records 1,983 households per hardware store across six cities; Perth demonstrates the busiest hardware stores and home repair services within the state.
- Tasmania shows 854 households per repair service statewide, the lowest ratio of any state, with Hobart and Launceston contributing to the average.
- Queensland shows diverse results, with Mackay recording 1,903 households per hardware store, while larger centres like Brisbane have 5,472 households.
- New South Wales claims six positions in the top 10 repair service rankings, including Orange (363), Bathurst (429), and Wagga Wagga (577).
- Cities in Victoria, like Shepparton with 553 households per hardware store, to 7,716 households in Melbourne, demonstrate service availability diversity in the state.
- Hardware stores and home repair services in cities under 100,000 residents are more accessible compared to major metropolitan cities due to smaller area sizes and population.
What Creates Renovation Infrastructure Pressure?
Population vs Store Economics
Larger cities such as Melbourne, with 7,716 households per store, and Sydney, with 6750 households per store, may have higher customer traffic daily and therefore charge higher prices, as well as may face a lack of service and supplies. In contrast, Shepparton serves only 553 households per store because of lower population rates compared to the larger cities.
Regional economies function differently overall; with lower population density, smaller regions have more stores per capita. For instance, Orange (989 households per store) and Bathurst (803 households per store) support a range of local retailers, which allows for developing a competitive inner market and a diverse accessibility of local services to the local population.
Urban Market Dynamics
The bigger the city, the higher the demand. This kind of trend slows down business formation, and the demand consequently outpaces the supply. The city of Sydney, with 13,160 households per home repair service, shows that urban areas attract tradespeople, but the population growth and density increase faster than new businesses can be established, which leads to a shortage of the service supply. Additionally, there may be other barriers that hinder the entry into the metropolitan markets, such as fierce competition, higher quality requirements, insurance costs, and licensing demands.
In the urban environment, service providers focus on specific trades to fit into the niche rather than offering standardized services. This may lead to service scarcity when measured against total household numbers.
Regional Infrastructure Advantages
In the regional areas, customers can benefit from lower costs per service, simpler planning, visit scheduling, and various loyalty programs. Moreover, towns and cities with specialisation in agriculture and mining allow for a stable demand that supports consistent revenue for both hardware stores and repair services. Therefore, local independent businesses can operate and compete effectively against major chains.
State Infrastructure Analysis
Western Australia Leads Hardware Access
Western Australia showcases an average of 1,983 households per hardware store across six cities, with regional centres like Bunbury (773) and Mandurah (960) creating a favorable environment for local independent retailers, providing residents with easy accessibility and availability of goods thanks to store diversity. On the other hand, hardware stores in Perth serve 5,221 households, illustrating that major cities have a lower concentration of the large stores, while regional areas support a fair ground for different retailers.
Tasmania Dominates Repair Services
Tasmania has 854 households per home repair service statewide. Island isolation limits external competition, allowing local repair businesses to maintain stable customer bases. Hobart (1,055) and Launceston (654), for instance, benefit from geographic location, as other companies from the mainland don’t poach their customers.
NSW Shows Urban-Rural Divide
New South Wales, with Sydney’s 6,751 households per hardware store to Bathurst’s 803 households, represents the widest diversity across all states. Orange (363 households per repair service) and Bathurst (429 households per repair service) maintain competitive markets that contrast sharply with 13,160 households per home repair service in Sydney.
Consumer Impact
DIY Shopping Challenges
In the major cities, residents may experience longer travel times, limited store options, and crowds. 7,716 households per hardware store in Melbourne shows that shopping conditions can be stressful due to long queues, unavailability of products, and lower availability of staff to assist with technical advice. Meanwhile, regional residents can enjoy a selection of nearby stores with prominently shorter queues, travel times, and better availability of staff.
Professional Service Bottlenecks
The limitation of urban repair services leads to appointment wait times. Sydney, which serves 13,160 households per home repair service, consumers have to book weeks, if not months ahead, thus changing their daily life schedule. Cities like Orange (363 households per repair service) or Adelaide Hills (303 households per repair service) can offer faster response times and more flexible scheduling due to higher availability and lower demand.
Renovation Planning Implications
Infrastructure density also plays a pivotal role when it comes to project and budget planning. In large cities, renovations of any type can take time to get both services and materials, creating planning and coordination challenges. As a result, it can delay the renovation project. All planning processes in regional areas can typically happen much quicker and with more flexibility because suppliers and contractors are often more available.
How to Navigate Renovation Infrastructure
Hardware Shopping Strategy
Research store locations and competition levels before starting projects. Areas with multiple competing retailers offer better pricing and product selection through competitive pressure. Build relationships with independent retailers in competitive markets for technical advice and special ordering offers.
Consider timing purchases around competitor promotional cycles in areas with multiple stores. Regional markets with strong competition often feature coordinated sales periods that benefit consumers seeking bulk materials or specialised products.
Finding Repair Services
Book services in advance in areas with concentrated provider markets like major cities. Leverage competitive regional markets by obtaining multiple quotes and comparing service offerings beyond price alone. Consider providers from nearby competitive markets for major projects where travel costs remain economical.
Competition drives service quality improvements, so prioritise areas with multiple providers when selecting contractors. Competitive markets encourage reputation-based differentiation and customer service excellence that benefits renovation outcomes.
Project Planning Tips
Consider infrastructure density in renovation timelines and budgets. Competitive markets offer flexibility and better value, while concentrated markets require more structured planning and higher budget allocation.
Use competition levels to assess service quality expectations and pricing strategies. Areas with strong provider competition typically deliver better customer outcomes through market pressure for excellence and competitive pricing structures.
Conclusion
Australia’s renovation infrastructure operates on inverse economics - cities with the most households have the fewest hardware stores and repair services per capita. Regional markets sustain multiple competing providers, while urban areas tend to concentrate around fewer operators, creating service bottlenecks and reduced customer choice.
Competition drives service quality and pricing benefits regardless of market size. Areas with multiple providers consistently deliver better customer outcomes than concentrated markets, whether in Tasmania’s local competition or regional centres with diverse business networks.
Infrastructure planning should prioritise competitive market structures over provider consolidation. The data shows that fostering multiple operators creates better consumer value than relying on large-format solutions to meet growing renovation demand.
Table
| City | State | Households served per one store | Households served per one home repair service |
| Melbourne | Victoria | 7716,5 | 13735,4 |
| Sydney | New South Wales | 6750,9 | 13160,0 |
| Brisbane | Queensland | 5472,2 | 6877,2 |
| Perth | Western Australia | 5221,1 | 6536,1 |
| Logan City | Queensland | 5302,9 | 3282,8 |
| Adelaide | South Australia | 5214,8 | 4469,8 |
| Gold Coast | Queensland | 4230,6 | 2680,8 |
| Bendigo | Victoria | 3798,1 | 1208,5 |
| Wollongong | New South Wales | 5965,1 | 877,2 |
| Rockingham | Western Australia | 2495,7 | 2033,5 |
| Geelong | Victoria | 3775,8 | 1184,6 |
| Darwin | Northern Territory | 2347,2 | 1248,5 |
| Hobart | Tasmania | 2662,9 | 1054,6 |
| Toowoomba | Queensland | 2178,1 | 1481,1 |
| Ballarat | Victoria | 2397,4 | 1048,9 |
| Cairns | Queensland | 1729,1 | 1513,0 |
| Maitland | New South Wales | 3414,2 | 758,7 |
| Bundaberg | Queensland | 2003,6 | 940,4 |
| Townsville | Queensland | 2360,5 | 794,9 |
| Newcastle | New South Wales | 3390,0 | 717,1 |
| Warrnambool | Victoria | 5341,7 | 333,9 |
| Mackay | Queensland | 1903,0 | 930,3 |
| Port Macquarie | New South Wales | 2102,7 | 799,0 |
| Armadale | Western Australia | 806,8 | 1100,2 |
| Albury | New South Wales | 1627,6 | 797,2 |
| Tamworth | New South Wales | 2310,6 | 589,9 |
| Rockhampton | Queensland | 1377,5 | 746,1 |
| Mandurah | Western Australia | 959,6 | 774,4 |
| Launceston | Tasmania | 1206,5 | 653,5 |
| Wagga Wagga | New South Wales | 1412,5 | 576,5 |
| Albany | Western Australia | 1639,4 | 392,0 |
| Queanbeyan | New South Wales | 580,7 | 593,3 |
| Bathurst | New South Wales | 802,7 | 429,4 |
| Orange | New South Wales | 988,7 | 363,2 |
| Bunbury | Western Australia | 772,8 | 401,8 |
| Adelaide Hills | South Australia | 719,5 | 303,0 |
| Shepparton | Victoria | 553,1 | 298,7 |
Methodology
Data collection: Hardware store and home repair service information scraped from Google Places API across 37 Australian cities. Service providers are classified by business category and location data to ensure accurate geographic assignment.
Geographic coverage: Analysis conducted at the municipality level, including entire local government areas, not limited to main urban centers. This approach captures suburban and peri-urban service providers serving city populations.
Household data: Dwelling numbers sourced from Australian Bureau of Statistics census data for corresponding municipal boundaries. Household-per-provider ratios are calculated by dividing total dwellings by the number of identified businesses in each category.
Study limitations: Data reflects businesses listed on Google Places and may not capture all service providers. Results represent a snapshot at the time of data collection and may not reflect seasonal variations or recent business changes.
