I’m not suggesting that the nature of the political party that forms our next government will have an effect on hot tub sales but it would be nice if we could all just settle down and get on with business. Wouldn’t’ it?

Is some form of early summer voting to become an annual event? Should I block out some time in the diary for May 2018? Two elections and a referendum in just three years is starting to look like a trend.

Whatever your political inclinations or your feelings about Europe, we probably all agree that stability and a reasonably good idea of what the future might hold is good for business.

But sadly, that isn’t the world that we are living in at the moment.

I read the news today, oh boy.

From the TV set and your social media through The Guardian to Google, the one thing that we aren’t short of is news.

Unfortunately it seems that an ancient survival instinct has meant that we take more notice of bad news than the good. I guess that ‘watch out for that dinosaur’ is potentially a more important message than ‘what a pretty view’.

But it does mean that doom and gloom, or at least ‘serious cause for concern’ garners more engagement, and hence revenue, for the media industry and so they tend to peddle it rather more heavily.

On the other hand, there’s no smoke without fire. Brexit and its affect on the exchange rate have put prices up throughout our industry. Elections tend to cloud people’s view of the future and make them think that they might wait a while to see what happens before choosing to invest in a pool refurbishment or a new sauna.

At the end of the day, changes and challenges are just everyday facts of life.

And that’s a good thing.

We’ve just started to promote the new Dura Pro heat pump. It’s Duratech’s most efficient heat pump yet.

That sustainable, energy saving technology has leaped forward in popularity because of rising fuel costs and because the media has helped push environmental concerns higher up people’s agendas.

DEL makes a replacement slat that is polycarbonate and not only protects the pool from dirt and debris but, because of solar gain, helps warm the water using only the energy from the sun.

That slat now accounts for about 30% of the market. Once again, it’s the changes in people’s attitude to energy that have driven that growth.

EVA Optic LED lighting, Crystal water treatment systems and the new, more efficient pumps from Speck are all growing in sales volume because they can make existing pools, and new ones, more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.

A few years ago, those issues were a challenge for our industry but now we’ve responded to them, now that we have changed, they are an opportunity for growth.

The people have spoken.

I suppose elections and referendums are just ways of asking people what they think, what their opinions are.

We’ve been doing a bit of that ourselves.

A couple of months ago we published and shared the results of the 6th Wet Leisure Industry Survey. It’s on the basis of that they I can say with some confidence that last year would have been a better year for business without the uncertainty of Brexit and the exchange rate issues.

I can be equally confident in saying that energy saving products and a concern for the environment are industry-wide issues and not just something I’ve seen in our own business.

And now we’ve launched another survey. Our Customer Satisfaction survey.

We have always taken pride in our customer service and we know that the only way we can do what we do even better is by asking people like you what you think.

So we’re asking you to complete this survey so that we can improve the level of service that we give you. There are only 10 questions, so it shouldn’t take long.

As a little ‘thank you’, everyone who completes the survey will be entered into a draw for a chance to win £250 off their next order.

If you haven’t taken the survey already, then why not use this link and do it now.

A tick in the box.

That election and this new season will soon be upon us.

We all have a vote, but realistically we have as much individual control over the political and economic landscape that comes after June 8th as we do over the weather. And that’s fine. That’s a fact of life.

There are lots of things we can affect; not least of which is having confidence in how we deal with the changes and challenges that are coming.

I’ve been in this industry for 40 years and I don’t think I’ve ever seen it in such good shape. We’ve all got the technology and attitude, knowledge and professionalism that we need to prosper.

So as the season approaches we just need to make sure that we have all the boxes ticked. Mail shots and newsletters. PR and promotions. Innovative new products and good old-fashioned customer service.

And if there is anything that we can do to help you with that list, please just get in touch