MAM
Big ticket items are driving growth in the consumer durables industry this festive season: GfK
Mumbai: The pandemic effect appears to be waning as buying momentum for home appliances and electronics has improved in 2022, more so for premium products.
According to GfK market intelligence offline retail tracking, the top five consumer durable goods that contributed the most volume to growth during the festive season of 2021 compared to their annual sales were televisions (28 per cent), microwave ovens (28 per cent), vacuum cleaners (25 per cent) and washing machines (25 per cent). Based on past trends, these four products are expected to drive the growth of the consumer durable industry during this festive season as well.
GfK head of market intelligence India Anant Jain said, “As a result of the epidemic outbreak, consumer goods sales have been facing challenges for the past two years, but now things appear to be returning to “normal.” The fact that certain significant industries experienced strong double-digit growth in Q1 of 2022 is proof that the offline market has received a stimulus with shoppers moving back to the market to shop. For select categories, like washing machines, microwaves, televisions, and vacuum cleaners, the festive season accounts for more than 25 per cent of their annual sales. Additionally, electric water heaters also sell more than 30 per cent of their annual volumes during the festive months. With a 17 per cent volume gain over the prior year in July 2022 and a 21 per cent increase in value for major domestic appliances, consumer durables enjoyed a good start to the second quarter of 2022 (AC, refrigerator, washing machine, microwave).”
The second half of the year also looks promising for consumer durables due to the upcoming festivities in October. Every major manufacturer, retailer, and e-commerce platform is promoting their festive deals. Volume increased by 16 per cent year on year in October 2021. Sales of all major domestic appliance products are influenced by the festive season, especially during the Diwali months of October and November, and contribute roughly 17–19 per cent of all sales annually. This percentage is more for small domestic appliance categories, at about 21-23 per cent. During the forthcoming festive season, healthy growth and recovery of the early months lost owing to the third wave in January and February ’22 is anticipated.
As businesses compete for customers by offering incentives, some trends have emerged in the retail landscape. In addition to standard regular discounts, marketers are enticing customers with exchange offers, lucky draws, cashback, gift sets, and extended warranties. The trend of premiumization is expected to continue this festive season as Indian consumers continue to seek products that provide superior performance and user experience.
According to GfK’s assessment of industry expectations, some features and innovations are beginning to gain traction as ways to draw customers to new product launches. For instance, the industry anticipates products where design and personalisation come together to create the best possible customer experience. Consumers have responded favourably to smart appliances, which require minimal maintenance and have a wide range of capabilities. Some of the new features in products like refrigerators, which include voice commands to play music, check the weather, manage one’s calendar, and perform other daily tasks. Another example would be washing machines that use AI to detect load size, fabric types, and soil levels and will auto-adjust the optimal wash cycle and amount of detergent.
There is similar innovation in the television category, where it is expected that laser TVs may eventually replace PTVs because they use 30 per cent less energy than PTVs of comparable size (>75 inches), have a better recyclability concept (87 per cent recyclability), and require less material across the supply chain.
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
