The World Cup is underway: brands and chains play their game

With the attraction of the World Cup in Qatar in sight, manufacturers, brands and specialist networks are working against the clock in designing their campaigns to promote television sales. In the market they value shipping this year more than 3 million units (20% more than the previous year) Despite the tightening of credit and the acceleration of inflation. Five months into the World Cup, the clubs are already playing a cross game the price war and bids.

A first indicator of auspicious forecasts is the Hot Sale, one of the most important annual promotions. “Television demand has exceeded all expectations”, summarizes Pablo Cetrolo, chief of Cetrogar. It is estimated that 320,000 devices would have been sold in May, more than double the same month last year. “To a certain extent – adds Cetrolo – the influences of the World Cup and it is very likely that the purchases were made in advance“.

The companies anticipate the shares in view of the beginning of the World Cup, on November 21, atypical date for the maximum football competition. In these days, Negotiations are intensifying to ensure the supply of goods during the whole year. Something complex for the Argentine context and also for the whole world. All these elements have altered the positioning of brands and also of specialized chains.

A report from consulting firm MRT (Market, Research & Technology) indicates that 1,053,000 televisions entered the market from January to May, mainly from Tierra del Fuego. Of that total, 18% comes from Philips, 16% from Noblex and 9.6% from Samsung. The Korean brand fell to 3rd place after leading the category in recent years. The top ten are completed by Philco (7.02%), RCA (7.01%), TCL (6.86%), BGH (6.15%), Hitachi (5.5%), LG (4, 67%) and Hisense (3.29%).

In the industry explain that Samsung’s recession has to do with shortage of processors and chips, which the company produces in China and Vietnam for all. For the paralysis of some of its plants, They moved part of the production to Egypt and that the problem is in the normalization process. The increase allowed Noblex (a national brand) to lead the category for the first time in its history in 2021, with a market share of 17%. From behind were Philips (15%) and Samsung (14.8%), the MRT report indicates.

“Demand is good and there is not a lot of stock. Although there are no shortages, in retail there is a certain discomfort because consumption is higher “, acknowledges Ramiro Martin, manager of the TV business at BGH. In the sector they exclude shortages, but agree that there are not many screens larger than the major ones being worked on, “What is the range in which Samsung leads“.

“Production is now getting off to a great start, as are the purchasing planning and advertising actions. The shift in the date of the World Cup (traditionally played to June) means that the television season is extended by 6 months“, explains Cetrolo. Christian Stuhldreher, of Noblex, comments that they intend to anticipate the advertising campaign for next month because “The World Cup is not on people’s radar yet“.

Noblex belongs to Newsan, the Fuegiano group that controls several television brands: Philco, Jvc, Hisense and Motorola. It also produces and distributes for LG, the other Korean brand that competes in the local market. Motorola – of the Lenovo group – enters the category for the first time and has already launched the first 4 models (32 “, 43”, 50 “and 55”). Then they will add the 65 and 75 -inch screens, with which they aspire to compete in the Premium segment.

“For the date, the World Cup follows our calendar and overlaps with other hot trading dates, such as holidays. Inflation is a complicating factor, but with financing, household appliances are very competitive“Said Javier Cominotti, Marketing Manager Megatone. In the sector they are enthusiastic about the good performance of the Argentine national team because they believe it is an additional incentive to increase sales.

In terms of technologies, the industry agrees 55 “and 4K screens is emerging as the ambitious model for the next World Cup. The prices of a team with these characteristics range from $ 90,000 to $ 250,000, depending on the brand and characteristics. “Más que tecnología, la demand apunta to las pantallas más grandes”, says Stuhldreher and brings a relevant datum for the industry: “In el último año, the people pasó de mirar 3 hours por día, a 4.7 hours, en promedio “.

The date of the World Cup (between November and December) represents a challenge for companies and manufacturers, because it overlaps with the high season for air conditioners and refrigerators, for example. However, they believe that the primary is the availability of credit. “The installment purchase is an additional condiment because it is a way to beat inflation. Argentines know the subject,” explains Cetrolo. For this Martin stresses that “it is very feasible to anticipate consumption”.