Household appliances: the shortages grew and already complicate the purchase

Martin Grosz

10/18/2020 3:55 PM

• Clarín.com

• Society

Updated 10/18/2020 3:55 PM

The mission seemed simple: get a handheld processor, the kind known as mixers or minipimers.

Daniel thought it would be just a formality, but no.

"I went to the best-known stores first, and I was surprised to

. They offered only very inexpensive brands, which did not inspire confidence. And, if not, high-end professionals for $ 16,000, $ 20,000 or more.

 or the brands I was looking for, such as Philips or Atma. I ended up in Mercado Libre, where I also found very little, "the man told

.

Experiences like that of this neighbor of Villa Crespo became common in Argentina, and not only with small appliances for the kitchen.

Those looking for all kinds of household appliances are finding a

 in physical and online stores.

That is why people, instead of acquiring what they had in mind, often end up resigning themselves to "what is there". 

Cell phones, tablets, notebooks and televisions are among the most affected areas.

But also refrigerators, washing machines, water heaters and hot water tanks, and even kitchens and microwaves.

It was detected by

in a survey and confirmed by six independent sources from commerce and industry in the sector, who speak of "inconveniences" in the provision and of "

".

"There is no shortage, but there are

in various categories. Although there are products, there may be fewer options," acknowledges the commercial director of an important chain, in which they ask not to be named.

The obligation to isolate themselves at home accentuated for many families the need to renew or add a television.

Of some brands it is difficult to find models.

Photo Marcelo Carroll

Last week, for example, in the online stores of two chains in the sector there were no

TVs from Samsung or LG, the two leading brands.

They also did not have the standard line of

, with the iPhone at the helm.

In refrigerators, the Whirlpool only offered a few models: 2 in one case, 3 in another.

There were few microwaves.

And in Longvie water heaters they only offered one, the 14-liter with natural draft;

In one of the stores, that was even

.

"As a result of the pandemic, many products have been in greater demand than anticipated. For example, everything that is electronics and notebooks to study, work and entertain at home. People also looked for many refrigerators, washing machines and all that It is used for cooking. Those categories were the ones that registered the most supply problems. Because in parallel, and for various reasons, there was a

", explains Diego Botana, Commercial and Retail Director of the Garbarino Group.

Behind the phenomenon, a cocktail of reasons

As the shortages grew in coincidence with the soaring of the parallel dollar, there are many who suspect that they could be due to

 by importers, manufacturers or merchants, who have stopped selling pending a devaluation, as is happening in other industries.

In the sector, however, they rule out that something like this could be happening on a large scale.

They do point out that the record gap further increased people's interest in acquiring electrical appliances, the price of which is linked to the official dollar.

But, when explaining the shortages, they mainly point to how

and the obstacles to importing.

Local factories, they say, went for months without working, while stores continued to sell to the consumer.

And now, in many cases, they still ca

.

First, because the protocols have forced them to work on reduced hours and with fewer personnel.

Second, because coronavirus infections in the same plants often force production to stop.

And third, because their input suppliers have the same problems.

In Tierra del Fuego, for example, sources from the electronics industry recall that the factories in Río Grande were 

for

at the beginning of the quarantine, and then another three weeks in August, while those in Ushuaia stopped for a week in September.

They attribute to that - and to how the protocols limit the volume of production - the shortage of cell phones and TV.

Similar obstacles suffered the production of refrigerators in provinces such as Buenos Aires and Santa Fe;

those of hot water tanks and water heaters, in the GBA and in San Luis;

and that of washing machines and dryers, in Córdoba, according to what this medium learned.

"We do not see any speculative attitude either from the channel or from the suppliers; in fact, we are all

", summarizes Santiago Martínez, Director of Sales of the BGH Group.

"Due to the pandemic," he explains, "there was an unforeseen demand for products such as notebooks, televisions, Gaming categories and air conditioners. And, in parallel, Covid-19 had an effect on production capacity, which implies a

.

" 

At the beginning of the quarantine, the locals could not open their salons and only sold in their online stores.

Photo Juan Manuel Foglia

"We had been working with very limited inventory levels and, after almost two months with the factories closed, the update was complex," adds Diego Puhl, director of Digital Appliances at Samsung.

"Today it is costing us more with microwaves because demand is very high. With the rest, white goods, we are better off, although there may be temporary stock breaks in specific products and models," he adds.

The sources of the sector consulted affirm that they have no problems at the moment to import

to produce.

But some do report delays and obstacles to the entry of

.

In general, high-end models that are not manufactured locally due to lack of scale.

A well-known international brand, for example, tells

 that this year it was only able to import a

, "limitations or delays" in the official endorsement of operations and the provision of dollars.

For this reason, several non-frost refrigerators, freezers and washing machines of that label became difficult figures in the premises.

Due to isolation and the exchange gap, demand rebounded

"Despite the crisis, today the problem

of household appliances. There are people in stores wanting to buy. Interest is there, and it even tends to grow. What is sometimes lacking are products."

This is how an important company in the field sums up the current situation.

Manufacturers and sellers of technology and appliances for the home agree that, after an initial impact of the quarantine, the demand rebounded and today it continues on a recovery path.

And they attribute this to a combo of factors.

On the one hand, because

very specific

for equipment.

On the other hand, a

economic

in which the most recent rally in the blue dollar had a lot to do with it.

It is assumed that the prices of these products are set according to the official dollar, and that makes them look cheap for those who have savings in dollars and exchange them in the informal market.

In addition, the cost in pesos can be paid with a card in 12 or 18 payments at a subsidized rate and with a

from the official Now plans.

"Several factors came together. Because of working or studying in quarantine, the families needed notebooks and printers, and they saw the need to add or modernize the television, the refrigerators, the kitchen ... The offers and quotas without interest for national products were an impulse to invest in living better, as well as the limits to use that money in

or in

", explains Botana, from Garbarino. 

The INDEC Home Appliances Survey

that sales in the country, after reaching a floor of

million

in April

, had a rebound and reached 

 in June (latest data),

.

In the following months the trend would have continued, as they believe in the sector.

"In the accumulated, the market is this year below last year, but the slope is positive. The good news is that it began to grow", they indicate in Samsung.

"People, being more at home, began to demand many ovens, hoods, stoves and microwaves. Also

, whose sale at the beginning of the pandemic

" they add.

The South Korean brand also had higher-than-expected sales of high-end equipment, such as

refrigerators

.

And the same happened to them on cell phones: the demand for the premium range, they say, grew by more than 50%, something they attribute to the fact that, "due to the exchange rate difference", now they are available here at prices "up to 40% cheaper. "than in the United States.

"So much so that the Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy S20 models

 after the sale started and the Note20 was the best-selling Note series in Argentina since its launch. In addition, the demand for other equipment also grew premium such as Galaxy S10 and Note10 "stand out.

In the second quarter, marked by the hard quarantine,

of spending on household appliances was for

and video and photography equipment;

16.9% for telephony products;

and 12% for

and their accessories.

13.3% of the amount paid by people went to stoves, ovens, heaters, water heaters and hot water tanks;

10.1% to washing machines;

8.8% to refrigerators and freezers;

and 4.9% to small electrical appliances. 

MG