Instant retail and consumer electronics "go both ways"
author：China Electronic News
Instant retail and consumer electronics "go both ways"
The new accessories of Xiaomi's smart car SU7 and Xiaomi's ecological chain products can be purchased on JD Hour, with door-to-door delivery in as fast as 30 minutes......
Instant retail and consumer electronics "go both ways"
Jingdong hourly delivery staff to deliver Xiaomi products
Instant retail platforms such as JD.com, Meituan Flash Sale, and Ele.me are widely uniting with leading brands such as mobile phones, computers, and home appliances to provide consumers with the service of "buying consumer electronics products like ordering takeout". This also means that in line with the instant and convenient purchase of consumer products, instant retail, we are quickly entering the era of "hourly delivery" of all categories. Industry insiders pointed out that consumer electronics is an important category for instant retail platforms, and instant retail channels will become a booster for the omni-channel development of the consumer electronics market. However, it remains to be seen how much the "two-way rush" of instant retail and consumer electronics will help both sides.
Exploded due to "buy now" demand
When "staying, busy, and urgent" has become the norm of life, the demand of young people for "ready-to-use" has become more and more obvious. Instant retail, focusing on "immediate". According to the definition given in the "Instant Retail Industry Development Report (2023)" released by the Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Commerce, instant retail is a retail format that meets local immediate demand through online instant ordering, offline instant fulfillment, and relying on local retail supply.
In recent years, instant retail platforms such as Meituan Flash Sale and JD.com Hourda have risen rapidly, linking brand stores, integrated electrical appliance chains, supermarkets, department stores, warehouse stores and other multi-format merchants to launch instant retail services and guide the digital transformation of stores.
The reporter learned that the goods sold on the instant retail platform are all from stores within a few kilometers of the user's vicinity, and the goods are more "spot inventory in nearby stores", so they can quickly let the takeaway pick up the goods, and then deliver them to consumers in a short time.
Even for consumer electronics and home appliances, users can place an order and receive the goods quickly at every moment when they "want to cook on a whim", "want to buy the same model from a friend's house", "need a cleaning helper when cleaning", and "want to experience the new mobile phone product release immediately".
In September 2023, the iPhone 15 series will be released on the first day, and platforms such as Meituan Flash Sale, Ele.me, JD Hourda, and Douyin will launch "iPhone New Product Sales" to strengthen the user experience of "everything can be bought, everything can be given", and instant retail has entered an explosive period. In 2023, Meituan Flash Sale will explore the new retail format of "Everything at Home", and comprehensively expand its user base, merchant network, and instant delivery network. During the "Double Eleven" period in 2023, the turnover of washing machines and refrigerators increased by 160% year-on-year, and the turnover of smoke stove sets increased by more than 220% year-on-year. In 2023, the sales volume of electric fans and electric heaters on the Meituan flash sale platform will be in the millions, with a year-on-year increase of 200%.
Wang Xiaoyan, Vice President of Xiaomi Group and President of China, said that in recent years, the instant retail market has grown rapidly and developed rapidly, especially in the 3C industry. The instant retail model is no longer just for emergencies, but to meet the needs of more and more "buy and get" convenience shopping, and more than 4,000 Xiaomi Home stores have entered the JD Hourly Delivery platform.
Major appliances can also be "take-out"
Small household appliances are the "vanguard" of consumer electronics products embracing instant retail platforms. The reporter learned that the proportion of instant consumption demand for small kitchen appliances is the highest, mainly to meet the needs of users for planting grass and trying freshness; users have a higher demand for personal care small household appliances to please themselves and gifts; users value the ability of small household appliances to meet health needs and function upgrades in a timely manner. The above needs are met on the instant retail platform, and user habits are gradually maturing, especially to meet the gift demands in the holiday scene. The data shows that the instant consumption purchase rates of small kitchen appliances, small environmental appliances and small personal care appliances are 69%, 43% and 39% respectively.
Instant retail and consumer electronics "go both ways"
Meituan flash sale search "air fryer" interface
The continuous improvement of the instant delivery service of the instant retail platform has also promoted the user's instant consumption willingness to transition to major appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, and TVs.
The reporter searched for "TV" on the interface of Jingdong hour, and there were more than 20 stores within 5 kilometers from home to provide Huawei, Samsung, TCL and other latest TV products for choice, including Huawei franchise stores, TCL flagship stores, Jingdong home, etc., and some stores sold more than 100 pieces per month. The reporter searched for "air conditioning" products that need installation services,There are many offline stores such as Midea、TCL、Hisense、Haier and other offline stores provide services,Monthly sales of more than 200 pieces are mainly concentrated in Jingdong home wire experience stores。
It is reported that from October 29 to October 30, 2023, Meituan's flash sale of "3C Digital Home Appliances Day", TV/washing machine sales increased by 500% year-on-year. After cooperating with Meituan's flash sale, Xiaomi's major appliance business will reach 10 million yuan in sales in the second half of 2023.
Major appliances tend to be large in size and weight, and some involve installation services. In response to the above needs, JD Hourda uses the advantages of offline stores to create a special service of "delivery and installation" to bring consumers a more convenient shopping experience. Meituan Flash Sale will upgrade its delivery system in 2023, and its four-wheel transportation capacity has covered many cities across the country, supporting the delivery of almost all home appliances such as air conditioners, refrigerators, and washing machines.
Wang Zhen, head of Meituan's flash sale digital home appliances, said that small household appliances are naturally compatible with instant retail, and large appliances also have room for exploration due to timely delivery and reliable channels.
However, Pei Dongmin, deputy general manager of the major appliance business department of AVC, said in an interview with a reporter from China Electronics News that from the demand side, the urgency of the demand for "real-time" is low, so the scale breakthrough of the major appliance in the instant retail platform needs more advantageous factors, such as dissolving consumer concerns in the dimensions of professional product sales and service, and forming an advantage in product price.
"Two-way running" for the future
The online and offline omni-channel retail of home appliances and consumer electronics in mainland China has long been the trend of the times. In the eyes of industry insiders, the instant retail channel has become a booster for the omni-channel development of the consumer electronics market, and consumer electronics is also an important category for the instant retail platform to grab.
Instant retail is actually a digital business of offline stores, after digitally upgrading offline inventory, goods, prices, services, including the management of people, offline stores will be moved online, and merchants, brands, stores, platforms and other parties will jointly bring a convenient consumption experience of "goods up to hours or even minutes", and bring new increments to stores in all channels.
The relationship between e-commerce and offline retail is a competitive relationship of "one trade-off", and instant retail relies on offline retail and also serves offline retail, which is a useful supplement to the channel. Taking JD Hourda as an example, relying on LBS (location-based service) big data operation and analysis, it helps 3C home appliance retailers and brands improve operational efficiency, gain insight into user consumption portraits, identify grid business opportunities, and tap new users and sales growth through global precision marketing, product management and innovative scenario creation.
For home appliance and consumer electronics brands, the competition in the online market is becoming more and more fierce, and it is urgent to return to the offline market to tap the increment. The "2024 Home Appliance Innovation Retail White Paper" released by Aowei Cloud Network pointed out that for brand owners, the arrival of instant retail is tantamount to sending charcoal in the snow. Instant retail has the advantages of offline scenes, services, and experience, as well as the advantages of online efficiency, cost, and scale, which is an effective supplement to e-commerce channels and the key to connecting offline and online scenarios, so it is relied on by more and more brands.
"On the one hand, instant retail can make online and offline products the same and promote, giving users a consistent shopping experience regardless of online and offline, and on the other hand, empowering stores through online platforms, greatly improving the operating radius of stores, helping stores improve operational efficiency, and plugging in the wings of 'efficiency' for offline experiential and instant advantages. Wang Xiaoyan said.
For the platform side, the competition for instant retail is still in its early stages, and the biggest two elements of competition for players such as Meituan Flash Sale, JD Hourda, Ele.me and Douyin Hourda are rich supply and efficient fulfillment. Industry insiders believe that when it is difficult to quickly complete the capacity building of platform performance, seizing high-quality supply has become the most important thing, and consumer electronics has become an important aspect.
The reporter learned through the interview that the consumer electronics market with high customer unit price in the past is the focus of online e-commerce and offline physical retail stores.
At present, industry data proves the high growth of consumer electronics and instant retail. According to the data, the instant retail market of consumer electronics will gradually develop in 2021, with a market size of 39.9 billion yuan in 2023, and is expected to achieve a 3.8-fold growth by 2026, and will develop at a compound annual growth rate of 68.5% from 2021 to 2026.
Dong Min, secretary-general of the China Electronic Video Industry Association, said in an interview with a reporter from China Electronics News that with the tide of consumer electronics and even home appliances, instant consumption is bringing incremental growth to the market, but it also needs brand enterprises and sales platforms to think about the social impact of instant retail, such as the balance between takeaway services and physical manufacturing, so on the one hand, I hope that large enterprises will remain cautious about instant retail, and on the other hand, I hope to be able to do a good job in the local inventory management of goods.
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