By Kritika Arora
With the festive season just around the corner, Kamal Nandi, business head and executive vice president at Godrej Appliances, told FE’s Kritika Arora in an interview that while the premium segment is doing well and could see a growth of over 50% this season, mass segment could pick up from Q4 with a possible easing in inflation trend.
What is your expectation from the upcoming festive season?
We had Onam few days back and the indicators show that products in the premium category have done well with growth in excess of 50%. However, mass product categories are lagging behind. Going by this, we see a similar trend in the festive period. Demand is coming in for 95% food disinfection technology in refrigerators and washing machines. We are gearing up our supply side to support this demand.
So, do you think that premium products will fuel the growth this festive season?
The festive season will largely be driven by the premium segment with an over 50% growth as we have a smaller base in this category.
Is it a shift from mass to premium or existing premium customers continuing the purchase trend?
I think it’s both as we are seeing people upgrading to premium with easy finance options that are available today. Secondly, the premium segment consumer purchase is not getting impacted by the inflationary trend.
What are the offers and discounts that customers can expect?
This year, our focus is to ensure that consumers have much more liquidity in their hands. We have offers like `1 down payment, multi-EMI options, cash backs up to `12,000, extended warranties, etc. We want the consumers to buy despite the inflationary trend.
Are you facing any supply issues due to China Covid curbs?
We are well placed and don’t see any disruption till November. But if China remains closed beyond October, it could lead to some supply issues.
Do you see demand sustaining beyond the festive season?
We are expecting inflation to ease by the second half of the year and with good agricultural output, we see numbers in the fourth quarter to be fairly well. We also see a demand growth in the mass segment in H2.
What is your full-year outlook?
We are targeting `5,500 crore in revenues this year, a growth of 35% compared to last year and largely driven by the premium segment. As far as the mass segment is concerned, growth may be more or less flat or marginal.
What’s the impact of commodity pricing situation on the industry?
Commodity prices are softening but at the same time currency is depreciating, thereby offsetting any benefit.
Is there a room for price reduction in the future?
It’s out of question. The overall hike in commodity prices since December 2020 has been 35% compared to our price increases of only 20% — a gap of 8-9%. So, it rules out any reduction.
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