What you need to know
Electricals retailing returned to growth in 2014 after three years of spending contraction and four years of falling sales in the specialists sector. Progress accelerated in 2015 as unemployment fell and consumer confidence grew in a benign economic environment. Pent-up demand for discretionary products was unlocked and the electricals market has been one of the beneficiaries of this. Media Markt threw down the gauntlet with a very impressive 14% increase in sales in the year to September 2015, which we think few if any other leading electrical goods retailers will have matched with the possible exception of Amazon. While deflation eased in 2015, promotional activity was still particularly strong at the Black Friday event in November. There were few signs of retailers opting out as a number did in the UK but this could change in 2016 as companies seek to reinforce their price integrity and protect their margins during the important run up to Christmas.
Areas covered in this report
This report covers the electrical goods market in Spain, 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 and hypermarkets, 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 Spain, 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 Spanish 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.
