LG Electronics hopes to grow the air-conditioner market this year with its new energy efficient range, particularly inverter-technology models, which help save on power. Currently, LG is the market leader, with a 23 per cent share of the 3.2 million-unit air-conditioner market in India.
“We target to grow by 20 per cent this year,” said Saurabh Baishakhia, Business Head –Air-Conditioners, LG Electronics India Pvt Ltd. According to him, in the last two years the air-conditioner market remained almost static. “But, this year the market will move up, as consumer sentiment seems to be improving across geographies,” he said.
However, he admitted that the power situation in Tamil Nadu could be a major deterrent. Generally, the South is the biggest market for air-conditioners. Tamil Nadu in particular is a 10-month-long market for air-conditioners, and it accounts for about 15 per cent of the total market in the country (the entire South accounts for 30 per cent).
In the last 18 months, prices of air-conditioners went up by at least 15 per cent, owing to various reasons such as pressure on input costs and the rupee-dollar value. To a question on whether LG will play the price card, Baishakhia said price can no longer be a deciding factor. “Now the price differential between any two brands’ apple-to-apple products is almost between 5 and 10 per cent,” he added.
Elaborating on the new range, he said it uses Inverter V technology, which is designed to give energy saving up to 66 per cent and provide airflow up to 30 feet. With this range, the company currently has a total of 66 SKUs (stock keeping units), which includes 8 inverter-technology based models.