According to GfK data, in Italy sales of consumer technology products grew by +5.5% during 2020 and the overall market value reached 15.5 billion euros. Growth was driven by the IT Office sector (+32.5%) and Small Appliances (+15.5%). The overall market value reached 15.5 billion euros and while sales in traditional stores recorded a slight decline – due to the closures and mobility restrictions introduced to combat the pandemic – the on-line channel saw a significant growth, accounting for 24.4% of total sales at value. The growth was driven by the positive performance of the IT Office sector (+32.5%), which at the end of 2020 generated 23.9% of the total value of the Italian Technical Consumer Goods market. But also Small Appliances (+ 15.5%), Consumer Electronics (+ 4.7%) and Major Domestic Appliances (+ 3.4%) closed the last year with a good trend. On the other hand, the Telecommunication sector slowed down during 2020 (-5.2%), but it was confirmed as the most important for the Italian consumer technology market, with a share of 34.6%. The result of Home Comfort sector (-16.2%) and that of Photography (-36.9%) were decidedly more negative, showing a particular suffering due by the restrictions related to Covid-19 and the strong downsizing of travel, events and other social occasions. Going to consider the trend of sales during the year, there is a constant growth of the market compared to 2019. The only negative trends are those relating to the months of March and April, corresponding to the first lockdown. Compared to past years, the importance of the last quarter of the year is still growing, accounting for 33% of total value sales. In fact, between October and December, many promotional initiatives were concentrated, driving the purchases of technology: a phenomenon that goes well beyond the Black Friday week and extends over the entire “Golden Quarter”.
