The washing machine industry ushered in a new round of reshuffle

Affected by the economic situation, industrial policies, and consumer demand, this year's washing machine industry has not been able to maintain the growth trend of the past year and continues to be sluggish. The report released by market research institutions in recent days suggests that the washing machine industry is beginning a new round of reshuffling.

Last year, the domestic appliance industry, especially household electrical appliances, suffered a growth bottleneck. According to data from Ovid Cloud, last year, the sales of refrigerators and the amount of refrigerators both decreased year-on-year, and the air-conditioning volume increased slightly by less than 1 percentage point. In contrast, the relatively low-key washing machine market maintained a steady growth. The annual retail volume was 32.92 million units, an increase of 0.8% year-on-year, and retail sales of 57.6 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.6%. However, with the increase in downward pressure on the overall economy and market demand is still weak, the industry is not optimistic about this year's washing machine market.

A total push data released by China Yikang recently showed that the washing machine market is continuing to slump. In April 2015, the retail sales volume of the washing machine market was 2.56 million units, which was a year-on-year decrease of 2.3%. The retail sales amounted to RMB 5.1 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 0.6%. During the May 1st, the retail sales of washing machine retail terminals reached 3.12 million units, with retail sales of 6.6 billion yuan, down 1.7% and 0.8% year-on-year respectively.

And the washing machine market has also shown new features. Among them, the more prominent is that price competition has started to intensify. The offline inspection data from Zhongkang show that the overall average price of the washing machine market in April only slightly increased 1.5% year-on-year, except for frequency conversion and frequency conversion. The average unit price of wheeled washing machines increased by 7.3% year-on-year. The average unit price of washing machines such as parallel bars, pulsators, fixed-frequency pulsators, drums, fixed-frequency drums, and frequency conversion drums fell across the board compared with the same period of last year. At the same time, the degree of brand concentration has gradually increased. Take 51 as an example, the overall share of brand retail sales in the top three retail sales reached 29.1%, and the retail sales share reached 55%.

However, the washing machine market is not without bright spots. Dong Xinxin, an analyst at Ove Cloud Net Ice Wash Division, said that the washing machine industry is "a revolution that is going from 'small' to 'large'." Data show that from January to April 2015, the retail sales of 8.1kg+ washing machines reached a 6.5% share, and the retail sales share reached 8.9%. The year-on-year sales growth rate was 105%, which was much higher than other capacity segments.

"The large-capacity washing machine has become a new force in the washing machine market." Major manufacturers are increasing the intensity of large-capacity washing machine products. Statistics from Ovid Cloud.com show that among the new washing machines listed in January-April this year, more than 8.1 kg accounted for products. Compared with continuous expansion, “42.2% of new Haier-listed products are 8.1kg+ products, which is 57.1%, 85.7% and 21.9% respectively in Siemens, Panasonic and Samsung.” High concentration in the 10kg+ ultra-large capacity segment, Samsung And LG's share has reached 94.3%, but domestic brands are also accelerating the layout, Casa Di launches the Twin Ella washing machine, Little Swan also launched the first new 15Kg drum.

According to Zuo Yanchao, general manager of Zhongkang Brand Center, the current big brands relied on their financial advantages and advanced technical skills to upgrade the structure of their enterprises and products. The high-end trend was obvious, and the brand share was gradually increased, and the market would intensify the reshuffle. "In the second half of the year, with the introduction of relevant policies and the intensification of competition, the Matthew effect of washing machines will become more serious. Stronger ones will be stronger, and the weak will be eliminated or devoured. This will become the main theme of the washing machine industry."