This is marketing research on the Appliances industry and can include information on the background, market structure, definitions, competitors, trends and developments of appliances and is related to vacuums, stoves, refrigerators and housewares

Table of Contents

[edit] Background

Household appliances include household cooking equipment: household electric and non-electric cooking equipment such as stoves, ranges, and ovens, including microwave and convection ovens); household refrigerators and home and farm freezers; household laundry equipment: laundry equipment such as washing machines, dryers, and ironers for household use, including coin-operated); electric housewares and fans: electric housewares for heating, cooking, and other purposes and electric household fans except attic fans); household vacuum cleaners; and household appliances not elsewhere classified: household appliances such as water heaters, dishwashers, food waste disposal units, and household sewing machines.

[edit] Market Structure

The U.S. appliance industry is a relatively mature industry, with five companies producing a full line of major household appliances — cooking, refrigeration, and laundry — and many more companies specializing in more narrow lines of product categories. There are also many companies that produce small household appliances. Since many appliances have changed only slightly over recent decades, there is little to differentiate one manufacturer’s products from another’s. The result has been intense price competition as appliances have tended to be considered more and more like commodities by consumers.

About 10 years ago, the industry began a globalization process that started when Electrolux of Sweden acquired White Consolidated Inc. of the United States with the Frigidaire, Kelvinator, and White Westinghouse brands. This was followed by Whirlpool’s acquisition of Phillips’s European appliance business. Since that time, there have been several international acquisitions, consolidations, and restructurings. Along the way there have been a few missteps and retreats. Today, the two global market leaders are Electrolux and Whirlpool, with a strong presence in most of the important markets around the world. In addition, there are several other manufacturers with a strong market position in one or more local markets Many of the manufacturers moving into foreign markets found the competition much more intense and unremitting than they expected. Maytag, which had acquired Hoover with plants in the United Kingdom and Australia in addition to the United States, sold off the foreign operations because of fierce competition. Whirlpool, which entered into several joint ventures in China and India to produce refrigerators and laundry equipment, experienced large losses in China as a result of falling prices caused by industry overcapacity. Another problem in recent years has been currency devaluations and economic difficulties in several countries in Asia and South America as well as Russia, which slowed appliance sales drastically. In addition, the economies of several countries in Europe have been far from robust in recent years, with high rates of unemployment. In spite of these difficulties, the trend toward globalization will continue. The introduction of the Euro at the beginning of 1999 is having a major impact in the European markets by facilitating price comparisons between goods such as appliances produced in different European countries. This will encourage increased trade among the European countries. Further industry consolidation probably will result as weaker companies are forced out of the industry.

The number of establishments in the appliances manufacturing industry has declined over the past several years. There are only a few major manufacturers and they have not significantly expanded operations.

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The number of workers has also declined in the industry since 2002. The workforce in the industry has decreased by 10% and now totals less than 90,000.

This is highly concentrated industry. The four largest players account for over half the total revenues in the appliances business.

Concentration of Revenue by number of firms in the industry is as follows:


Total Number of firms       Revenue as % of all firms in the industry

     4 largest                              62.2%
     8 largest                              70.8%
    20 largest                              84.7%
    50 largest                              95.9%

[edit] Market Metrics

By 2002, the industry had shown no appreciable revenue gains over the prior 5 year period. It was anticipated, however, that the boom in U.S. residential construction mid-decade has since boosted these numbers as new households have recently likely purchased more appliances.

[edit] Industry Players

These are major players in this market, but it is not an exhaustive list of all key firms.

Revenues, Net Income and Market Capitalization are expressed in US$ Millions.

[edit] Recent Trends and Developments

In the United States, most of the demand for household appliances is due to housing construction, kitchen remodeling, and replacements, since for basic appliances such as ranges, refrigerators, and laundry equipment, the market is virtually saturated. However, there appears to be a trend for more households to have a second of some types of appliances. For example,nearly 20 percent of homes are estimated to have two refrigerators. Many dens or family rooms with wet bars now have a small under-the-counter refrigerator. There are even out- door refrigerators for use with backyard barbecues. There is often a second microwave oven in the home. Aiding this trend is the increasing size of the houses currently being built, providing the needed space for these extra appliances. Population growth and the number of household formations are key underlying determinants of new housing and appliance demand. The outlook for demand in this regard is favorable, since current expectations are that the U.S. population will increase about 0.8 percent annually over the next 5 years and the number of households will increase 1.0 percent annually. As was mentioned before, the baby boom generation has been an important factor in the increased demand for high-end appliances. This cohort, now 34 to 53 years of age, will continue to be an important source of consumer appliance spending for several more years as its members pass through their high income years. Consumers in this age range have the highest average annual expenditures for major appliances and tend to replace an old appliance with an improved model with more advanced features.

[edit] Sources

• Most current US government sources