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HomeConsumer Technology
Poorly-performing local economies influence consumer electronics
and housing markets alike
Store level information from NPD shows five of the six designated market areas (DMAs) with the biggest declines in consumer electronics and information technology (CE and IT) spending for the fourth quarter of 2007 were also housing markets with some of the most significant price declines for the fourth quarter of 2007 (as reported by The National Association of Realtors). Sacramento, Phoenix, Tampa, Detroit, and Orlando all experienced the largest declines in CE and IT spending, based on dollars per store.
Q4 2007 Consumer Technology Spending By Market |
|
| Total U.S. | -4.3% |
| Sacramento | -14.0% |
| Tampa | -12.8% |
| Phoenix | -11.2% |
| Detroit | -11.1% |
| Orlando | -9.1% |
Source: The NPD Group/Weekly Tracking Service
Even CE and IT categories that were huge hits nationally during the 2007 holiday season are now suffering in these weaker markets. Total U.S. LCD TV dollars per store grew by 45 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007, but Orlando, for example, only saw 28 percent growth. Another example was notebook computers, which declined by two percent in Sacramento while the total U.S. experienced 13 percent growth.
“Seeing sales results like these, at such a granular level, really drives home the notion that technology is not quite the necessity as national data, and past history, may indicate,” said Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis, The NPD Group. “From expensive to low- cost, from cutting-edge and new to the old and mundane, technology products are struggling to maintain their share of consumer spending in markets where the local economy is poor. In order to deliver future growth at the same levels as the past, it’s important to be able to pinpoint which local markets are doing well and which markets are struggling, figure out why, and then develop strategies to correct the situation.”
To learn more about how NPD can help you uncover and leverage opportunities, even in a slackening economy, contact Charlie Camaroto at 866-444-1411 (contactnpd@npd.com).