Consumer durables, electronics demand surpasses pre-Covid-19 levels: OLX

New Delhi: Computers, laptops & accessories and tablets have seen the highest growth among all categories of consumer electronics and appliances, across both metros and non-metros, driven by continued work from home and online schooling for kids, according to a release from online classifieds platform OLX. This is matched by growth in demand for home decor and garden furniture owing to people spending a lot more time at home and the celebratory optimism of the festive season, the release added.
As per data from OLX, both metro and non-metro users show a similar trend in their demand for computers and laptops. There is an increase of nearly 150% for computers and laptops in Q3, 2020 over the first quarter of the year and nearly 100% increase in demand for computer accessories in the same time frame.

In home décor and garden furniture, demand in non-metros far outstrips that in the metros. While the former has registered 175% increase in demand in Q3, over Q1 of 2020, metros have registered 100% increase in demand, the release said.

Interestingly, the growth in total number of buyers from non-metros outstrips those from metros across all consumer goods categories in Q3, 2020 over Q1. Demand for consumer durable products such as ACs, TVs, washing machines and furniture (sofa and dining) is nearly 2X in all these categories in the non-metros for Q3, 2020 compared to Q1, 2020. This trend is a reflection of the impact of the pandemic in metros compared to non-metro that are expected to recover faster than its metros from the Covid-19 disruption, the release said.

The supply or new listings on OLX amid Covid-19 months also continues to outstrip the pre-Covid-19 levels. Notably, the listings of fashion goods across all geographic clusters, has seen the highest increase in Q3 over Q1, registering nearly twice the growth in metros over this period.

Similarly, in both the electronics/appliances and furniture categories, growth in the number of listings from non-metros has outstripped the growth in metros by a factor of 2-3 across different product types. This highlights the inclination among people to upgrade, especially ahead and during the festive period. With the lockdown, users have also had more time on hand to rearrange their homes by doing away with goods they no longer need, on OLX.