HDTV Drove Top 100 Sales In '04
By Steve Smith -- TWICE, 5/9/2005
It is often said during a Presidential election year the economy becomes a little more robust, whether or not actual economic indicators were suffering from inflation, recession or stagflation, or even if we are involved in a war.
Well, that observation proved to be true last year for the overall economy in general and CE specifically, in light of the results of the TWICE Top 100 CE Retailers report. (See p. 17.) Our report shows that retail sales for the Top 100 during calendar year 2004 reached $96.7 billion, an increase of 7.9 percent.
The growing popularity of digital television was the main engine that drove consumers to CE stores of all types during 2004, as more broadcast, cable and satellite HD programming became available.
But HDTV was not the only category driving consumers to retail. The home audio business made a comeback, with many retailers reporting that new HDTV owners went back to buy home systems to hear the HD experience. In portable audio the iPod phenomenon is well-documented, along with the growing popularity of satellite radio at home and on the road. And among the other product luminaries, digital cameras (with or without a cellphone attached), DVD recorders, TiVo and other DVRs all were popular.
Beneficiaries of the continuing digital revolution are marked by two sides of the retail spectrum: national chains emphasizing price (but trying to go upscale), and small regional or independent dealers that emphasize their expertise and service. In the middle are some big-box regionals that are trying to compete on price with the nationals. But that is a tough place to be.
When you take a look at the top 10 in our list, things seem to be relatively stable, given the changes in the industry. Of this year's top 10, warehouse club giant Costco is a newcomer at No. 9 and a hefty 9.72 percent increase in sales during 2004 to $2.22 billion. The growth in Costco is understandable since it has upgraded its mix with more upscale electronics. Consumers do the research on the Web and are confident enough to buy without sales help, a growing a trend.
Another significant change is that manufacturers continue to appear on this top retailers' list. Dell (No. 4) and Gateway (No. 14) have been on our Top 100 list for several years. They were joined a couple of years ago by Apple Computer (No. 17) based on its iPod sales via the Web and the 86 stores it operates nationwide.
But for the first time a well-known CE brand appears in the TWICE CE Top 100. Sony debuts at No. 26 at $500 million, based on sales from its Web site and its 26 retail locations. The challenge for Sony will be how it balances its own retail sales, while still selling its products through many of the major retail chains that are on this list. (For more on Sony, see the PRO Group story on p. 1.)
In closing I'd like to thank our new vendor partner who helped prepare this year's TWICE Top 100 Consumer Electronics report, The Stevenson Group of Louisville, Ky., and to Bob Tancula and his team. At TWICE I'd like to thank senior editor Alan Wolf, managing editor John Laposky, copy editor Lisa Cervini and graphic designer Desiree Nunez for a job well done.
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