From the fury in television sales due to the World Cup, to the drop in sales in 2023

Unlike what happened in 2022, when the World Cup boosted sales of impressive TVs where you can’t miss the details of Messi’s plays, In 2023, consumption of household appliances and technological products decreased by 2.7% in units compared to the previous year.

The data comes from GfK, a company of market researcher NIQ, which tests seven sectors, made up of 56 categories, and analyzes trends and purchasing patterns across various sectors. The study also analyzes how sales performed at two key online events, such as the Hot sale and Cyber ​​Monday.

This 2.7% unit decline compared to 2022 reflects local market dynamics. Some characteristics of the market were as follows:

– THE white line (refrigerators, kitchens, etc.) showed growth of 6.5%, 19% for online sales and 82% in commercial premises.

– THE small appliances It is a category that recorded growth of 1.3%, 20% of sales were virtual and 80% in the “offline” channel.

– THE mobile phone They showed 0.3% growth, 30% ON and 70% OFF.

– Air conditioning decreased by 4.7%, 19% were sold online and 81% in person.

– The “Wearables” (i.e electronic devices used in the human body and that interact with other devices to transmit or collect some type of data) decreased by 6.7%, with sales at 34% “on” and 66% “off”.

– THE Brown Line (i.e. everything that is audio, image and console) suffered a decline in units sold of 9.7%. 24% were sold online and 76% through physical channels.

– IT (IT) was the sector that presented the greatest drop in sales compared to 2022, it fell by 10.3%, 35% ON and 65% OFF.

“In the monthly analysis for 2023, we can highlight that consumer behavior was atypical following the presidential election. A year divided in two, with a first half-year which highlighted growth of 5.4% compared to the first months of 2022. And that’s a market It began to contract starting in August, with a cumulative decline in the second half of 10.5%. Two very different semesters,” comments Daniela Martínez, Head of CSM Tech and Durables at GfK, an NIQ company, in Argentina.

“The contraction of the last part of the year is also affected by an atypical last quarter of 2022, due the Football World Cup, which recorded decidedly high sales in some sectors, adds the executive.

The study also analyzed changes in the sales and billing unit categories compared to the same month of the previous year. The best-selling category in both units and billing volume was lsmartphones, which represent 23% of total sales volume and 25% of turnover, consolidating itself as the most important category in the retail market. Televisions follow in terms of both units and billings, accounting for 9% of units and accounting for 14% of total billings.

Hotsale and CyberMonday

The report also drew conclusions on key events such as the Hotsale on May 8, 9 and 10 and Cyber ​​Monday on November 6, 7 and 8. Despite promotional efforts, both events recorded negative changes in sales compared to previous editions.

During the Hotsale, the event week grew 133% in units compared to the previous week, however it failed to reach the volumes of the 2022 Hot Sale: they were down 14% compared to that edition. Participation in the Online channel reached 48% and exceeded that of the previous year’s edition by seven points. 87% of sales were made through the Especialistas channel, which achieved seven participation points more than Hiper and Super compared to the previous week. Smartphones lead the ranking of the best-selling categories, followed by TV and food preparation.

Then, on CyberMonday, sales decreased by -8% in units compared to the same event in 2022. What happened was that, due to the national context, many of the sales were ahead of the weeks leading up to the event. Given the uncertainty generated by the presidential elections, Many consumers have taken refuge in the purchase of durable goods. The category of The fans reached #2 best-selling by unit, moving up two places in the rankings compared to Cyber ​​22. Air conditioners are in first place in the billing ranking, surpassing smartphones and TVs.