Consumer electronics distributors report they have seen an uptick in business as the first half draws to a close due to more activity with their retail accounts, whether their businesses specialize in serving custom installers, wireless accounts or broad-based CE retailers.
For this midyear report on CE distributors TWICE contacted top executives in the field via e-mail and phone during May for a virtual roundtable about the current state of the market (see below) and issues such as product shortages (see below).
Some distributors contacted said that flat-panel TV is still the most popular category, while others note that no category has become a “must-have” this season (see p. 20). The demise of Circuit City has trickled more business to regional and independent dealers than some would have expected (see p. 20), according to a few distributors.
But all of the executives contacted said it is too early to tell what type of holiday sales season the industry might have, but many comments can fall under the old phrase “cautiously optimistic.”
Here are some of the edited responses of those executives TWICE contacted on these and other key issues facing distributors and retailers during this recession:
Uptick In CE Retailers’ Sales Real
Measuring The Effects Of Circuit City’s Demise
