Panasonic Australia grew by 9% last year and is a market leader in several categories including microwaves, plasma TVs and compact SLR cameras. They are also one of the most successful Panasonic subsidiaries in the world.
Internationally, the company is set to cut 15,000 jobs following a forecast loss of A$8.5Billion. However, none of these cuts are scheduled to impact Australia at this stage but they have not been ruled out in the future, said Steve Rust the Managing Director of Panasonic Australia.
During the past year Panasonic has globally seen a 15 percent decline in sales ending March 31, yet in Australia, the story is different.
“We have invested significantly in marketing and making sure that we have the right products for the Australian market,’ says Rust. “We have seen big growth in TV sales including both plasma and small LCD TVs and we are really making headway into the digital camera market with a range of high quality products.
“We have also invested in scientific research which has given us some excellent intelligence. We believe that consumers have significantly changed their lifestyles due to the economic downturn we believe that they are home nesting and as a result of this are selectively spending on home entertainment.”
He added, “They are also being careful with their money and only spending on permissible purchases. There is also a flight to quality branded products and this bears well for Panasonic as we have built our brand presence during the past year with our new agency Campaign Palace. When we launched our last plasma TV commercial we witnessed a big jump in both demand and the perception of the Panasonic brand among consumers.”
Rust also admitted that some areas of his business had been tough in particular office products and telephony. “We have not done well with office products and we are currently evaluating this area of our business. We are now moving to IP phone systems over traditional telephone products as well as new products for this market.”
Globally, Panasonic is set to join Sony, who last week reported losses of $4.9 Billion by closing factories as consumer spending slumps.
“Earnings have just been atrocious all around, while the massive scale and rapidity by which profits have evaporated is surprising,” said Naoteru Teraoka, who helps oversee $21 billion at Chuo Mitsui Asset Management Co. in Tokyo. “There’s no way to make up for the harsh environment simply by restructuring,” he told Bloomberg.
Demand for TVs and cameras won’t recover any earlier than the year starting April 2010, according to estimates at Credit Suisse Group AG and Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd. Despite massive losses, Panasonic is still proceeding with the purchase of Sanyo, which when concluded, will make them the world’s largest maker of rechargeable batteries. The company plans to close 27 factories initially, with more plants possibly being shut next fiscal year.
