(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Fifa?s showpiece event along with ramadan to give a major boost to retailers most of the popular tv brands have launched new models and promotional campaigns particularly targeting emiratis and other arab residents in the uae. — kt file photo
power retailers expect a significant increase in large-screen tv sales on rising demand from football fans in the uae in the build-up to the 2014 fifa world cup which is scheduled to kick off next week in brazil.
speaking to khaleej times they also mentioned that the holy month of ramadan has always boosted tv sales but this time the world cup is an additional factor which is one of the most-watched sporting extravaganzas. ramadan is expected to start on june 28 while the fifa event is starting on june 12.
most of the popular tv brands like samsung lg sony and hisense have launched new models and promotional campaigns particularly targeting emiratis and other arab residents in the country. the market is already in an upgrade cycle so a lot of promotions are going on especially on 55-inch-and-above sizes. there is also high demand for ultra-high-definition or uhd televisions in big sizes and 4k tv sets.
there are up to 50 per cent savings on purchases of large-screen panels. most of the promotions are in the shape of discounts gift vouchers and free football training. “this time we expect more significant sales compared to the last world cup as people are already upgrading in terms of size because of attractive prices. so the shift was already happening and the football event added more weight into it” jumbo electronics head of retail nadeem khanzadah said on saturday.
he mentioned that prices have been dropped by about 15 per cent — better than april’s gitex shopper. there is always a spike in sales every four years during the world cup.
jacky’s electronics chief operating officer ashish panjabi said: “we have seen a jump in sales in tv categories and uhd tvs are on top in terms of sales because of the world cup. ramadan is another factor for increasing tv sales.”
every world cup attracts a big increase in sales he said adding: “last year there was a focus on 3d tvs and this year uhd and big sizes such as 65-inch 75-inch and even 85-inch.”
he mentioned that there is also demand for curved tvs but the pricing is a little bit higher and stocks are not fully available. “in terms of revenues we are expecting at least a 40 per cent growth compared to same period last year” he said.
eros group chief executive officer deepak babani also expects that sales would double compared to the same period last year.
“this year’s timing of the world cup is good” babani said. “basically we are launching new models including uhd and the entire line-up for 2014 right now. from the middle of may until the middle of june we started getting all models especially large-screen sizes. we received a new 40-inch model in the first week of may and other large sizes are coming now” he explained. so before the world cup starts the whole new line-up will be available he confirmed.
sales always go up during the world cup but this time along with ramadan it is a kind of twin thing to take the sales level much higher he added.
harman middle east president amit malani said that there is going to be huge demand during the world cup in the uae especially on large panels.
“we are specialised in large sizes and all our promotions are highly-benefited for customers. we add value through sound equipment bundle offers” he said. in addition to promotions on new models there are fantastic deals on older-generation models he said.
this time harman has mixed football and ramadan deals he said adding that it’s going to be a long season this year.
he claimed that harman is the no.1 seller in the middle east in large-size tvs.
“for 85-inch and above no one is even close to harman in terms of sales volume” he added.
he said that there is a very strong trend for uhd primarily in 55-inch 65-inch and 85-inch. prices are also very reasonable compared to the previous year and that’s another reason people upgrading tv sets at home according to malani.
emax electronics chief executive officer neelesh bhatnagar said that ramadan is a good influence for tv sales every year as a lot of people do fasting during the day and watch tv programmes. the fifa world cup is another big thing this year bhatnagar said.
“business was almost 40 per cent more during the last two months compared to the same period in previous year. large screens — 55-inches and above — are doing well and a fast-seller in our shops largely due to the fifa world cup” he explained.
emax is kicking off its promotion from june 4 that will largely cover large-screen tvs with special prizes he revealed.
unlike regular promotions electronics retailer sharaf dg is offering free football coaching by the ifa football academy for kids on a purchase of selected samsung tv models with the theme “bigger is better”.
the training programme are valid for children from four to 16 years of age. ifa is the uae’s largest football training academy with over 2000 participants getting trained on a weekly basis. sharaf dg is offering savings from 13 to 51 per cent on popular brands like samsung lg sony philips and sharp.
jumbo electronics has launched promotions for sony and samsung. in addition to other non-tv related promotions on laptops and smartphones.
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