The rise of the home improvement sector — and where it could go next Increasing homeownership rates boosted the category in recent years, but unforeseen circumstances brought on by the pandemic helped land toilets on the list of most popular purchases of 2020. Published May 26, 2021 Courtesy of Lowe's Ask someone what the most popular products sold in 2020 were and they may answer toilet paper, face coverings and hand sanitizer. But among the top sellers was a group of products even more unexpected: Faucets, kitchen cabinets and toilets were the most popular products sold in 2020, according to data from the NPD Group. While the connection between a pandemic and most of the popular items sold at mass merchants was obvious, it wasn't as immediately clear why demand in the home improvement sector skyrocketed. According to NPD, dollar sales in the category rose 22% in 2020.