First JB Hi Fi boss Richard Uechtritz said it, now the Consumer Electronics Association has said that sales of gadgets are thriving as people hunker down in their homes to weather the brutal economic storm battering world markets.First JB Hi Fi boss Richard Uechtritz said it, now the Consumer Electronics Association has said that sales of gadgets are thriving as people hunker down in their homes to weather the brutal economic storm battering world markets.
Backing up these claims is Harvey Norman General Manager David Ackery who on Monday said “Sales of consumer technology are still reasonable strong. Several people in this industry have said that consumers are staying home and investing in new TV’s, gaming and computing. I have to agree”.
Gerry Harvey told ChannelNews “It happened during 911 and it appears to be happening again.”
According to the CEA who run the CES Expo in Las Vegas sales of flat-panel televisions are up an unwavering 40 percent from last year and the videogame industry is poised to do more business this year than last said CEA economist Shawn DuBravac.
“Consumers are cocooning and hunkering down,”DuBravac told the Associated Press this week.
He also said that consumers are cutting back on nights out at movie theatres but still rewarding themselves with electronics that provide more cinematic viewing experiences at home, according to the CEA.
“It seems that part of the story here is that people cutting back and living with ‘good enough’ everywhere else in their lives figure they might as well enjoy flat-panel televisions and other electronics.”
Despite the downturn the CEA has said that laptop computers, mobile telephones and satellite-linked navigation devices are among the electronics selling strong as portability remains a lure for buyers.
“During the past two recessions consumers did cut back on CE (consumer electronics) spending,” DuBravac said. “I think we are clearly in the midst of a recession right now and yet we haven’t cut back on our CE purchases.”
People appear to be shifting discretionary spending from cars, travel or other big ticket items to home electronics gadgets, particularly those that promise to last a few years.
In a promising sign for electronics makers, retailers’ inventories are running lean so increases in sales will trigger needs for ordering stock.
DuBravac expects online stores to benefit as people staying at home turn increasingly to the Internet for shopping bargains.
“People spooked by the headlines will be seeking value in online stores,” he said. “As people cut back on things like travel and stay at home, some online retail fits nicely into that.”
