Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM FEBRUARY 2021 62 A s an appliance retail store owner, I believe all of us in retail can agree that consumers have different seasons and various demands throughout the year. At the start of the year, after the holidays, the majority of retail stores see a decline in sales through January and February. Then sales tend to come back to normal in March, and the full line of appliance sales ramps up again. As summer arrives there's a high demand for refrigerators, and as fall turns, the demand for ovens and stoves rises in advance of holiday dinners, while laundry units are always on sale. And don't forget about dishwashers and microwaves. My mother always said, "This is the business to be in, because every household has a refrigerator and stove and everybody wants a washer and dryer." Even though 2020 has been a bad year for many, thankfully we're in the right industry, and we're considered essential to support households nationwide. I'm witnessing this in my business and in the stories of colleagues who talk about the steady flow and high demand for appliance repair, services and sales. Demand is so high that many distributors are having trouble keeping merchandise in stock, leaving many of them struggling to get product because they're selling more than ever. Many big box stores have a two-month or longer delay on delivery dates, which gives the independent companies an advantage to respond more quickly to consumer demand, since nobody wants to wait two months. And who can blame them? What if your refrigerator goes out and you need a replacement ASAP because your food is going to spoil? As long as the small companies can get merchandise, they have the upper hand by providing quicker delivery. When the pandemic started, the first thing to run out of stock were freezers. Consumers were scrambling to find freezers that they could fill with food because of their fear of the unknown. The panic was real, as we all saw – grocery shelves were empty, certain items were scarce, and people began to hoard due to the anxiety caused by city-wide shutdowns. I received roughly 20 calls a day for three months from customers looking to get their hands on a freezer. We sold out of freezers in two days – we sold 14 freezers in two days! We usually sell about 10 a year, and we wished we had more on hand because they were gold. Since many customers weren't able to get a stand-alone freezer, the next item in high demand was refrigerators. We also saw lots of people trying to get washers and dryers because they were scared to go to the laundromat. Dishwashers that hadn't been working right for years now needed to be replaced in order to sanitize dishes. I strongly believe that we can all relate to these conditions, and that financially it has been a great year for our industry and our colleagues, even though we had to go through some difficult times, witnessing too many losses in our staffs, even as the demand for appliances has been solid as never before. As long as the pandemic persists we will continue to provide essential services for households, putting our staff on the front lines. May you continue to have much success in your business and prosper as we go forward in this new year. Anthony Cotto, Owner of Twin Appliances Inc. Based in Los Angeles, California. Serving since 1995. S E R V I C E D E P A R T M E N T RO WHAT A YEAR FOR THE APPLIANCE INDUSTRY From appliance sales to repair services

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