Ruth Ferguson, marketing manager at Gorenje gives her opinion on the state of the built in oven market...

While it has been a difficult time in all sectors of the white goods market, including built-in ovens, there are signs of recovery and increased consumer interest.

The modern consumer is now much more discerning. They will understand, and expect, multi-function systems, automatic cleaning options and pre-configured cooking programmes. The kitchen specialist should ensure that they have a range of built-in ovens that feature advanced technology and should strive to impress with their product knowledge and expertise.

The economic climate has encouraged the consumer to retreat into the home, refurbishing their existing property rather than moving house. As a result, the consumer's attitude to purchasing a major appliance, such as a built-in oven, has changed - an investment product is top of the list.

This also offers the kitchen specialist an excellent opportunity to wow the consumer. The built-in oven has the potential to be the centre point of any well-designed kitchen, and as such a huge variety of stylish designs are now available.

Consumers are increasingly interested in energy efficient built-in ovens, but for a number of reasons this interest is not necessarily translating into sales. They need to recognise that conserving energy through the use of an eco-efficient oven can have both financial and environmental advantages.

As the built-in cooking market has become more mature, I would suggest that a wide proportion of future growth will come from an increasing replacement market for built-in cooking appliances. In terms of the replacement of failed appliances, but also exchanging poor specification and high-energy rated appliances in favour of more efficient models. Furthermore, manufacturers are investing heavily in built-in ovens and appliances, and it is a sector that has great potential in the future.