The tech and durables sector witnessed a 13 per value growth over previous year during the four-week festive season spanning across September 30- November 3 period, driven by heightened consumer demand across multiple categories, according to the latest weekly insights released by NielsenIQ from the organized channel powered by GfK intelligence. Categories such as large appliances, panel televisions, smartphones, and laptops witnessed “notable growth” with some products exhibiting stronger performance.

Anant Jain, Head of Customer Success – Tech & Durables, NielsenIQ, said “The sales during combined period of week of Diwali & a week prior (Oct 21 - Nov 03) accounted for 60 per cent of the festive sale. However, the growth over previous year was higher for combined period of Navratri and Dusshera (Sep 30 - Oct 13) than Diwali period.”

”While Navratri and Dussehra period recorded 18 per cent value growth, pre-Diwali week garnered 32 per cent value growth. So, the highest growth was recorded in the week leading up to Diwali. The research and insights firm said this could be due to weekend and promotional offers before the festival” he added.

“The Diwali week did not see an increase in growth (-1 per cent) when compared to the previous year.“This suggests a shift in consumer buying patterns, with early shoppers driving the bulk of growth during the festive season this year,” Jain further added.

Categories 

Smartphones were the largest category, driven by growing consumer interest in 5G devices. It garnered 14 per cent value growth over previous year during the four-week festival season period and most substantial growth was in the ₹10,000-15,000 price range. Meanwhile air conditioners led by split inverter models, saw impressive growth (39 per cent). AC sales grew three times faster than the overall sector.

“The laptop segment showed resilience, with a significant boost in sales during the festive period. While the category had been under pressure for much of the year, festive offers, particularly around gaming laptops, led to a 22% category growth,” it added. 

Both refrigerators (12 per cent)  and washing machines  (11 per cent) exhibited steady growth, with the smaller refrigerator segments—such as bottom-freezer models and three-door side-by-side (SBS) variants—recording growth exceeding 30 per cent indicating consistent consumer demand.

Though televisions remain an essential category during the festive season, panel televisions experienced the least growth (3 per cent) during this period. The Diwali week, in particular, saw a dip in consumer interest, with sales decreasing by 10 percent compared to the previous year’s Diwali week.

Consumers showed interest in special offers and discounts, innovative products and there was a shift towards premium and niche segment, it added. 

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