Reveals American Homeowners Increasingly Cherish Their Outdoor Space

PALATINE, Ill., Feb. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- The "outdoor room" -- characterized by design and landscape experts as a defined outside area with a cooking, eating, and sitting/entertaining place -- has become significantly more important to American homeowners during the last three years, according to the newest Weber Outdoor Room Tracking Study.

Latest Weber(R) Outdoor Room Tracking Study(TM) released: reveals American homeowners increasingly cherish their outdoor space. (PRNewsFoto/Weber-Stephen Products Co.) PALATINE, IL UNITED STATES 02/14/2007

According to the first Weber Outdoor Room Tracking Study released in 2003, 38 percent of the respondents said that the design of their outdoor room was just as important as the rooms inside their home; the latest Study, conducted in 2006, reflects a sizable 11 percent increase to 49 percent. In addition, among those who own a gas grill priced over $1,000, 11 percent say their outdoor room design is "more important" than their interior rooms, and 67 percent say it's "equally important."

Spending on the Rise

The amount of money outdoor room owners are spending to create their outside sanctuary has nearly doubled since the 2003 Study -- from an average of $5,400 to an average of $10,100. The percentage of those spending more than $10,000 increased markedly from 17 to 28 percent. Stunningly, those who have built-in gas grills have increased their outdoor room expenditures nearly three-fold from an average of $11,600 to $33,800.

Top Products

A barbecue grill and outdoor dining components still top the list of items in the outdoor room (97 percent say they have each of these), and respondents report that they spend 59 percent of their time in their outdoor room grilling.

Almost one half of respondents (48 percent) have "other lighting" in their outdoor room, and outside stereo systems/speaker ownership is up to 42 percent vs. 38 percent in 2003. Televisions are up to 15 from 9 percent.

Ownership of an outdoor fireplace has doubled from 16 percent in 2003 to 32 percent in 2006. The strong majority of these fireplace owners (78 percent) believe that it "adds value" to their outdoor space.

The leading individual item that respondents say is the "focus" of their outdoor room is the barbecue grill (47 percent), followed by the patio dining room set (45 percent), and then a separate sitting or entertaining area (33 percent).

Size and Location

In 2003, respondents said their outdoor room comfortably accommodated an average of 15.5 people, whereas today, it will accommodate 18.4. The percentage of outdoor rooms that host 25 or more people has increased significantly from 16 to 24 percent during the last three years.

The overwhelming majority of respondents (99 percent) say that their outdoor room is at their primary vs. their secondary home (1 percent). More than three-quarters of all respondents (78 percent) say their home with an outdoor room is located in a suburb, 9 percent say at a country home, and 4 percent say a lake property. Both a "coastal beach property" and "urban downtown area" came in at 3 percent.

Why This Trend?

In addition to consumers wanting more design and style in their lives, the outdoor room is quickly becoming more significant to Americans because they are spending more time at home: Fifty-five percent of those owning an outdoor room report "spending more time at home," and 49 percent without an outdoor room report that they, too, are doing the same. In 2003, it was 30 percent and 28 percent, respectively. These respondents cite the following reasons for their cocooning: Retirement (15 percent, up from 2 percent in 2003), followed by "enjoy being at home" (12 vs. 8 percent) and "enjoy entertaining at home" (9 vs. 2 percent).

And, those who own an outdoor room are using it frequently. They use the space the heaviest, on average, from July to September -- when respondents report that they spend nearly one-half (45 percent) of their free time in their outdoor space.

One of the strongest indicators from the Weber study that homeowners are happy with their outdoor rooms is when they were asked if it "adds to the quality" of their lives. Regardless of age, income or gender, a whopping 97 percent said "yes."

A Trend That Will Continue

The Weber Outdoor Room Tracking Study results show that popularity in the outdoor room will continue to grow. An impressive 44 percent of respondents who do not currently own an outdoor room say they are either "very interested" or "somewhat interested" in creating one. That figure rises to 83 percent for those who own a grill that costs over $1,000. The top three items they plan on including in their outdoor room are a barbecue grill (97 percent), a dining set (81 percent), and an outdoor fireplace (79 percent).

Among those who already have an outdoor room, 43 percent plan on adding more products to this space in the near future.

Methodology

The Weber Outdoor Room Tracking Study was conducted by third-party Synovate, Inc. A total of 1,016 gas grill owners throughout the United States completed the online survey. All participants were at least 18 years old, owned their home, and had household incomes of at least $75,000.

Weber-Stephen Products Co., headquartered in Palatine, Ill., is the premier manufacturer of charcoal and gas grills, grilling accessories and other outdoor room products. In 1952, founder George Stephen sparked a backyard revolution with his invention of the Weber(R) kettle. More than 50 years later, the family-owned company remains the industry leader with its Weber(R), Weber(R) Q(TM), and Ducane(R) brands. As a leading exporter of grills, Weber brand products are sold worldwide at select home centers, hardware stores, department stores, patio stores, and other retail outlets. Weber has the strongest consumer outreach program in the industry with its Weber Grill-Line(SM) (1-800-GRILL-OUT(R))* and a content-rich website with grilling tips, techniques, and original Weber recipes at http://www.weber.com.

* The Weber Grill-Line and Weber Customer Service are closed on Christmas day.

Source: Weber-Stephen Products Co.

CONTACT: Sherry L. Bale, +1-224-836-2724, sbale@weberstephen.com , or Kim Durk, +1-312-492-7722, kim@durkrion.com , both for Weber-Stephen Products Co.

Web site: http://www.weber.com/