Refrigeration Appliances in Russia

PROSPECTS

Ongoing return to purchasing big-ticket items following economic instability

Refrigeration appliances recorded stable retail volume growth in 2019, although this was not as impressive as the growth demonstrated by the category in 2018, when Russians returned to making purchases of big-ticket items following a period of economic instability mid-review period. The improved performance by the category was supported by efforts from banks to offer local consumers credit.

Huge surge in demand for freestanding electric wine coolers/chillers following dramatic reduction in unit price

Electric wine coolers/chillers, specially the freestanding format, recorded another year of impressive retail volume growth in 2019, although this growth was from a low sales base. Traditionally superfluous to most Russian households given its expense, the category experienced a huge reduction in its unit price in 2018 leading to a surge in demand.

Further heavy decline predicted for fridges over the forecast period

Despite offering the most affordable option within refrigeration appliances, fridges continued to decline in 2019 as it lost further ground to the affordable wide selection of fridge freezers, which offer a convenient and practical solution for many Russian households. This trend will continue into the forecast period, with the category suffering heavy declines to become almost obsolete by 2024.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Leading brand LG feels increasing pressure from more affordable brands

Refrigeration appliances continued to be dominated by global brand names in 2019 including well-known names such as LG and Indesit, which benefit from significant marketing, technological and financial resources. However, many of these appliances are produced locally using imported components to reduce costs and logistics to allow them to be more competitive with their prices.

Local brands compete by following latest global trends at accessible prices

Local brands continued to compete with major international brands in 2019, albeit with economy positioned products, with the price of some of their fridge freezers starting from RUB13,000, well below the category’s average. These particularly attracted Russian consumers during an unstable economic environment over the review period.

Birusa 120 model offers number of improvements for its fridge freezer

The largest local manufacturers of refrigeration appliances such as Pozis and Birusa follow the latest trends rather than being at the forefront of innovation. They attempt to improve their products with a variety of small details, such as better energy consumption parameters, or larger storage space.

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