'AI' washing machine to smart TV: Premium carts drive festive sales

MUMBAI: Premium products like AI-enabled washing machines, and 'smart' ACs continue to drive festive shopping demands, outpacing the mass segment.

Brands are rolling out offers and flexible payment schemes to soften the impact of inflation and get more customers to shop as the mass segment shows signs of recovery. Besides, a 'bountiful' monsoon is expected to have partially revived rural incomes.

"The premium segment has been the star performer this year, with strong growth across categories. The mass market has been stable so far," Kamal Nandi, business head and executive VP at Godrej Appliances told TOI, adding that the mass segment should pick up through the course of the festive period, which continues till Diwali.

"A good monsoon season positively impacts agricultural returns, which typically translates into increased demand in mass markets. We expect to see this uptick materialise more significantly going ahead," Nandi said.

Long-tenure EMI schemes run by brands on premium products and demand for product upgrades from customers in the metros is boosting the growth of the segment, industry executives said. "We expect value sales to grow over last year... the demand for premium products will increase more than last year," said Nilesh Gupta, director at Vijay Sales.

Haier Appliances India is expecting to close the festive season with a 35% year-on-year growth. Its president N S Satish said that LED TV and washing machine sales have surpassed projections since the onset of the season with Onam and the brand is hopeful of good Diwali sales amid increasing consumer appetite for premium products.

For Bata, demand for premium athleisure and fashion footwear is also coming from tier-2 and -3 cities. Consumers are opting for products that offer superior value propositions even if it means a higher price point, said Badri Beriwal, chief strategy and business development officer at Bata India. "The past few quarters saw some softness in consumer spending but several macroeconomic indicators are now aligning favourably. A good monsoon coupled with inflation coming into control is starting to create an optimistic consumer sentiment," Beriwal said.

Voltas is expecting a robust growth in demand from tier two and three regions. Besides premium, the entry level market is also moving up at a good pace, said MD & CEO Pradeep Bakshi. Jewellery brand Joyalukkas is offering gold rate protection plan to consumers wherein they can lock-in current rates with a 10% advance besides extending vouchers and old gold exchange benefits. Haier too is offering flexible payment schemes with EMIs starting at Rs 994 to spur demand in the mass markets. Uptick in urban demand and resilient rural regions is supporting festive demand despite inflationary pressures, said a Mondelez spokesperson.

Beverage giant Coca Cola is witnessing a positive momentum in sales with a notable trend towards festive consumption and gifting, said Sundeep Bajoria, vice-president of India operations at Coca Cola India.