Small domestic appliances are as popular as ever. Around 50 appliances are sold around the world every second – and this trend is on the rise. For 2016 GfK expects to see global sales grow by two to six percent. Last year global revenue stood at US$62.2 billion. China, in particular, is showing rapid growth compared with the previous year, with revenue up 20 percent. These are GfK’s findings for the global small domestic appliances market on the occasion of IFA 2016 in Berlin.

Innovations continue to be a strong factor in the growth of the small domestic appliances sector. More and more new product groups and “problem solvers” are tapping into markets that are not yet fully saturated. Around 30 percent of international growth (without USA and Canada) is achieved through innovations. Sales of cordless handstick vacuum cleaners, for example, have increased by 42 percent, achieving a value of €850 million. Sales of robotic vacuum cleaners also rose by 18 percent to €496 million. Kitchen appliances with cooking function and hair removal devices for women based on IPL technology showed an increase in growth of 45 percent and 17 percent, respectively. This represents revenues of €123 and €146 million, respectively.

Connected devices are all the rage

Connectivity is playing an increasingly important role in the market for small domestic appliances. Not only robot vacuum cleaners, but also electric toothbrushes, bathroom scales, fully automatic coffee machines and multicookers can now be controlled via smartphones or tablets. Trends such as guided cooking are no longer a distant reality. After taking over the major domestic appliances sector, the smart home and connectivity trend has now also taken hold of the small domestic appliances market. What used to be a purely niche segment has long since become mainstream, as demonstrated by “connected” electrical toothbrushes and bathroom scales, which have achieved a share of sales in Germany, for example, of 12 and 21 percent, respectively. 

Skin care devices and stand blenders show a growth in sales

Another trend is the growing health awareness of consumers. This is reflected not only in dietary behavior, but also in the increasing demand for personal care products. Revenue of stand blenders, which are often used to prepare healthy drinks, rose worldwide (excluding USA and Canada) by 11 percent to €878 million. In Western Europe, light therapy devices and skin care devices are much in demand among consumers. Compared with last year they achieved a growth in revenues of 8 and 7 percent, respectively.
Pollution issues in cities have also led to a boom in air purifiers, especially across Asia. In the 25 countries* covered by GfK, this product group grew by 22 percent compared with the previous year to reach €863 million.

Consumers attach greater importance to energy efficiency

Energy efficiency is also becoming increasingly important in the small domestic appliances market. In the European (EU 25) vacuum cleaner market, consumers are attaching greater importance to energy efficiency. The energy label for vacuum cleaners was introduced here in 2014. In May 2016 the percentage of devices sold in the highest energy efficiency class A had already reached 51 percent in Europe (EU 25), while the percentage of devices in the second highest class B stood at 18 percent. The percentage of classes A/B therefore showed an increase of 25 percent compared with the previous year.

About the method

Through its retail panels, GfK regularly collects data in over 90 countries worldwide on small domestic appliances in the areas of home comfort products, hot beverage makers, kitchen appliances, personal care products and spare parts. For the global market excluding North America, this evaluation is based on information from 87 countries for the first half of 2016.

*25 markets covered by GfK: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine and United Arab Emirates.

GfK activities at the IFA, September 2–7, 2016, Berlin:

1) The GfK Info Point at the IFA press center provides all the information published by GfK during IFA
2) Come and chat with our experts in the GfK office at the IFA (VIP Room 2, Großer Stern).
3) GfK Technical Innovation Conference “The Connected Consumer” on September 1, 1-3pm, IFA, Marshall Haus Messegelände Berlin. You can download the agenda here: http://www.gfk.com/insights/event/ifa-2016-2/

In occasion of IFA 2016 GfK publishes press releases relating to the sectors IT, TV, Smartphone & Wearables, Audio, Small Domestic Appliances and Major Domestic Appliances. All information are available on the web-site: http://www.gfk.com/press-room/press-releases/.