Electronic and white goods manufacturers Sony and LG claimed that their premium models stocked out during the festive season. Xiaomi said it was able to sell 2.5 million electronic devices during festive sales
Electronics and white goods sales figures have registered 12-15 per cent growth figures in comparison to numbers registered last year. The figures have also signaled the return of discretionary expenditures after two years.
Electronic and white goods manufacturers like Sony and LG claimed that their premium models stocked out during the festive season. Xiaomi also reported that it was able to sell 2.5 million electronic devices during two and a half days.
Raghu Reddy, head of categories and online sales, Xiaomi India had said, “We have witnessed tremendous success during our festive season year on year, and this year has been yet another incredible one with our products seeing wonderful performance in less than two and a half days.”
This dramatic increase in electronic and white goods sales in India is largely accredited to deeper penetration of consumer finance, and heavy discounts available on white goods listed on e-commerce portals.
Deep penetration of consumer finance
Rajan Rathore who runs a mobile shop in Delhi NCR said, “Out of 10 mobiles we sell, every 7 are financed through banks. There are many customers who cannot afford to pay the whole amount upfront and hence take the option. The consumer finance terms have become easy and require minimum paperwork which has further made it easy for our customers to buy smartphones of their choice.”
The current year has witnessed a lot more customers taking up the finance options. It actually contributed for over 80 per cent purchases made this year, the number was only 60 per cent last year. Apart from targeting tier 1 cities, the banks have also aimed tier 2 and tier 3 cities this year.
Mukesh Kumar, a resident of Mathura who recently purchased a smart TV costing Rs 23,000 said, “My kids and wife wanted a big smart TV but we were short on cash. I approached a retailer in Agra and he helped in doing all the paperwork required for the finance. I was able to take home the TV on the same day I went to the retailer. It really made my family happy. I will be paying no cost EMI for next six months. The only extra amount that I paid over TV’s price was the file charge but I am happy.”
Discounts on e-commerce portals
Electronic appliances sales on E-commerce portals also proved to be a big factor in driving numbers during the festive season. Two biggest e-commerce portals in India had announced festive sales that offered unmatched discounts. White goods including TVs, washing machines, refrigerators, smartphones, air purifiers and ACs were available at 30-35 per cent discounted prices which could have fueled the overall buying decisions.
Moreover, e-commerce portals may have provided extra discounts as a part of their customer acquisition costs. The war of being the number one e-commerce portal may have also helped customers in buying white goods at better discounted prices in comparison to offline channels.
Both Amazon and Flipkart have claimed that they were able to sell record number of televisions this festive season.
