In the first eight months of 2014 consumers in India spent 1.8 billion US dollar for refrigerators. Especially during the summer, when temperatures reach 47 degrees, spending on the appliances increases by 27%. From January to October the demand for refrigerators grew by 17%, comparing to the same period in 2013, with a revenue growth of 227 million US dollar (about 177 million euro). The data come from GfK, which underlines that in the country the industry expanded only 5% in 2013 due to several factors such as currency fluctuations, hike in prices of materials as well as fuel, which impacted consumer spending. “The market – highlighted Ushpreet Singh Bawa, account director, home & lifestyle for GfK in India – has improved markedly and is on an uptrend now, as the rise in average disposable income of households combined with changing consumer lifestyle is helping to drive growth, especially in the high-end segment”
As regard to the main types of refrigerator that exist in the Indian market, the more affordable – 1 door or direct cool segment – dominates and continues to remain popular.
One apparent trend which has emerged in the local market is the growing demand for high-end, higher capacity frost-free refrigerators. In the first eight months of this year, frost-free refrigerators with capacity greater than 400 liters registered a surge of more than 25% in volume and 36% in value. Another notable growth segment is the side-by-side refrigerators, which reflected higher demand by around 40%. GfK retail track for refrigerator across Urban India reported over 300 new models introduced in the first eight months of 2014. Nearly two out of three of the new launches were frost-free models, of which around 50 were above 400 liters in capacity.
