What you need to know
Spending on electricals has wavered around zero growth for the past five years despite an improvement in the German economy in 2015 that has seen unemployment reach its lowest level since reunification and domestic consumption drive GDP growth to 1.7%. Despite the low growth there has been a shift in spending towards online with Amazon in particular growing to become the second largest electrical goods retailer behind Media Markt/Saturn. The two retailers dominate the sector and the rapid shift towards multichannel retailing by Media Markt/Saturn has put some pressure on Amazon and this has slowed down its remarkable growth. The future will depend on how effectively Media Markt can maximise the use of its stores to provide a comprehensive, joined-up service to customers that offers a combination of in-store staff expertise and an accessible store network with the ease of use and convenience of an online retailer.
Areas covered in this report
This report covers the electrical goods market in Germany, with a focus on electrical specialists including high street and out-of-town operators. The report does not cover in detail non-specialists, such as department stores, although these are covered briefly in the Channels of Distribution section and also in our consumer research.
The report combines analysis of the market in Germany, including market sizes, specialists’ sales and forecasts, along with our in-depth consumer data, which analyses shoppers’ behaviour.
For the purpose of this report, Mintel has used the following definitions:
Consumer spending: The total amount spent by German households (including sales tax) on:
Appliances
Audio-visual, photo and information devices and accessories
Phones and other devices used to communicate
Retail sales: total sales of all types of goods and services (excluding sales tax) via stores and directly to the consumer by specialist retailers of electrical items. It includes online sales of these retailers where the majority of sales are in bricks and mortar outlets.
The Channels of Distribution section provides Mintel estimates of the proportions of spending on electrical items via other channels, including the grocers, mixed goods retailers and non-store retailers.
