Bhubaneswar: The prevalence of high temperatures across the state this summer, particularly since cyclone Fani struck, has boosted the sale of air-conditioners. Brands such as Blue Star, Daikin, LG, Samsung, Onida, Voltas and Hitachi are expecting the highest growth in air-conditioner sales this year compared with 2018.
LG, for which Odisha is a huge market, sold about 21,000 air-conditioners in Odisha from January to May, 2019. Managing Director of LG-Odisha, Manish Singhal, said: “We posted the highest sales growth this year as against 2018. We sold 16,000 ACs from January to April and about 5,000 ACs in May. Last year, from January to May, we sold about 17,000 ACs; this year we have sold 21,000 units at an estimated Rs80 crore.”
Although cyclone Fani did make sales difficult for “about 10 days”, things improved thence. “This year, we have posted 25 per cent growth in sales compared with 2018,” Manish said.
Blue Star has also recorded similar growth in the state. It sold more than 11,000 air-conditioners from January to May. “We sold ACs largely in April and May. We have sold 4,045 units in the two months, which is far higher than what was sold during the same period last year. We sold about 3,000 ACs in April and May in 2018,” Deepak Gurnai, Deputy General Manager (Sales), Blue Star, said.
“In the 15 days after Fani, we achieved the highest sales of ACs in the state. Last year, frequent rains affected our business. But this year we have seen good sales,” Gurnai added.
Samsung India, in turn, saw growth of more than 30 per cent across Odisha January-March 2019. “The company is seeing strong sales, particularly considering that consumers in east and south India today prefer air-conditioners that come with longer warranty and better energy efficiency. In Odisha we have posted growth of 30 per cent in sales against last year,” a company representative said.
Samsung air-conditioners has one of the best warranty propositions in its Triple Inverter Series. The series offers triple warranty benefits — 10-year warranty on compressor, 5-year warranty on Durafin condenser and another 2-year warranty on PCB Controller — on both indoor and outdoor units.
Another factor pushing growth in demand for Samsung air-conditioners, the company claims, is flexible finance schemes that it has introduced. Zero downpayment and long-tenure EMIs are attractive features of the company’s financing schemes.
Onida, another player in the market, is expecting 40 per cent growth in air-conditioner business in East India. Although Fani cooled Odisha and West Bengal, the company officials said it has not affected sales as eastern India is not a huge market for the company.