Best Buy says electronics demand could pick up again
Best Buy says electronics demand could pick up again
This week, Best Buy reported that its sales fell 6.3% compared to the same time last year. Demand for consumer electronics has been declining over the last couple of years, in large part, because many people bought the gadgets they needed early in the pandemic.
Best Buy’s CEO said that this year could be a low point for electronics demand. And that next year, demand could slowly start to pick up.
It’s true that people aren’t spending as much on computers this year as they are on traveling or eating out.
But Andrew Csicsila with AlixPartners said there’s still demand for electronics that fit into a more outdoor economy.
Like smart watches, for instance: “Devices that are wearables that are helping individuals lead a better health and wellness lifestyle.”
Csicsila said demand for electronics could eventually surge. Since devices people bought earlier in the pandemic aren’t going to last forever.
“So it could be a matter of they’re staying with the same product and replacing it, or they’re looking at new products and making the upgrades,” Csicsila said.
That said, consumers are still grappling with inflation.
Mikako Kitagawa, an analyst at Gartner, said people probably aren’t prioritizing any device upgrades right now.
“Meaning that, you know, I used to upgrade my device every four years, or three years. Maybe stretch [that] to five years,” Kitagawa said.
Still, Kitagawa said people started relying on their devices a lot more during the pandemic. And many of those habits aren’t going away.
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