Italian home appliance maker Merloni Elettrodomestici, owner of the Ariston and Indesit brands, forecasts 48 million euros in turnover this year, down from 2003, when sales were worth 49 million euros, said Eugen Paturan, Merloni Elettrodomestici country manager for Romania.
“Sales stagnated in the first half compared to the corresponding period of last year, and we expect full-year turnover to amount to 48 million euros,” Paturan stated.
The forecasts come as all importers of home appliances have seen a significant decline this year, after last year’s booming sales.
For instance, Merloni doubled its sales in 2003 as compared to the previous year, whereas the entire market surged 84% in the same period.
This year’s decline is pegged on lower consumer lending, as instalments have come to account for 50% of sales, down from 80-90% last year. This is also the reason why the market shares of expensive and cheap products have significantly changed. Thus, although the market volume has in fact dropped 10-15%, the market’s value is much below last year’s levels, because cheap products now account for a much larger share of it. Under the circumstances, the high-quality products saw decreasing sales.
Merloni Elettrodomestici is Europe’s third-largest home appliance maker and sells two brands on the Romanian market: Indesit (positioned on the middle segment) and Ariston (premium segment).
georgiana.stavarache@zf.ro