China is the fastest-growing home appliance market in the world. The Chinese home appliances market is undergoing a lucrative growth due to improving disposable incomes, urbanization, product mix rebalancing, and increasing consumption of white goods in rural areas. Since it has more advanced technologies and is relatively cheaper. It has a competitive advantage among others in the market which adds value to its exports.

The Chinese market has a high demand for white goods and small appliances. Whereas, in the kitchen appliances market consumer brand awareness is increasing with more emphasis on the design, feature functions, while falling price sensitivity. The demand for energy-efficient and environment- friendly products is also growing as a consumer are becoming more environmentally conscious. Meanwhile, Premium white goods are also gaining popularity in the market.

The air conditioner segment dominated China’s home appliance market due to its high domestic demand favored by growth in its exports. The washing machine and refrigerators are majorly supported by the trend of premiumization.

Key Market Trends

Sales Through E commerce Increased Manifold in Chinese Home Appliance Market

E-commerce’s contribution to China’s domestic consumption of home appliances has grown to record levels. The increase in e-commerce channels in China is being supported by its convenience in terms of product comparison and at-home delivery, diverse product offer, competitive pricing, and the capacity to reach consumers who do not have easy access to other channels.

Chinese consumers increased their spending on home appliances in 2019 with more than 40% of orders placed online. Ecommerce is making the greatest contribution to sales than ever as its share increased to about 7.5% as compared with the same period in 2018.

The sales of traditional home appliances such as TV and washing machines declined but on the other hand new technologically advanced products such as robot vacuum cleaners, dishwashers, electronic face cleansers enjoyed strong growth from the consumers. Small home appliances also saw explosive growth, while electric toothbrushes saw a huge increase in sales.

Online sales volume and value of air conditioners posted a year-on-year growth rate of 105.1% and 124% respectively, of hoods 99% and 92%, and of gas range 94% and 70% respectively. Sales value of air purifiers and water purifiers has grown by 91% and 50% year-on-year respectively.

Chinese e-commerce giant JD which started as a seller of electronic goods dominate the market in the first half of 2019, while Sunning and Alibaba platforms following the trend. Companies are speeding up the establishment of offline experience stores and flagship stores, to reinforce consumers’ online and offline experience and interaction and make shopping quicker and more convenient.

Leading Smart Home Appliances Purchased by Consumers In China

Technological advancements have led to the development of smart appliances and are expected to drive the growth of the household appliance market in China. Smartness has become a selling point for most home appliances. With Wi-Fi-capable products becoming commonplace, smart appliances are evolving from individual products to established situations with interconnected products.

At a stage of early exploration, both the business model and hardware of smart appliances need more breakthroughs. There are several issues to be addressed, such as non-unified standards, unsatisfying user experience, hardly friendly operations, etc. Appliances, such as washing machines, dishwashers, and refrigerators, are experiencing rapid growth.

In March 2017, China Household Electrical Appliances Association released its standard Cloud to Cloud Interconnection for Smart Household Appliances. Being the first of the industry, this standard paved the way for further development of smart appliances.

In July 2018, Xiaomi launched a new product to its Mijia product line. Mijia Smart Air Conditioner, which won the 2017 Good Design gold award, features an anti-UV ABS polymer resin body. The product further includes additional features such as an LED display on the front of the unit where users can control the temperature and cooling times via the Mi Home app from their smart devices.

Manufacturing wise, enterprises are stepping up their efforts in smart plant establishment and process improvement. Standard bearers grow particularly fast in this field.

Competitive Landscape

The Chinese home appliance market is highly competitive with domestic companies dominating the market. Traditional home appliance manufacturers are stepping up efforts to launch a smart home appliance. The strength of Chinese manufacturers is underpinned by their understanding of the particularities of local demand, extensive distribution networks, affordable pricing, and commitment to technological innovation.

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