Wireless Audio Equipment Still Highly Demanded in Germany

The German audio market is continuing to record significant growth in sales value, according to GfK. Wireless and, in most cases, Bluetooth-based solutions as well as equipment that allows users to connect with other devices are particularly popular.

The sales channels observed for the German audio market as part of the GfK retail panel have revealed that the revenue generated between March 2017 and February 2018 was higher than in the previous period. Sales totaled almost 1.7 billion euros, which corresponds to a growth rate of 5.2 percent. Headphones, docking and mini speakers, CD players, tuners, amplifiers, receivers, speakers and hi-fi equipment, including home cinema systems, compact systems and single components, were all taken into account.

Technical superstores and chains once again accounted for the lion's share of audio equipment sales. The proportion of online sales across all channels was at around 32.2 percent, which marks an increase of 1.7 percentage points compared to the period between March 2016 and February 2017.

With revenue of 445.1 million euros, headphones have a pretty high share of sales across all the audio product groups tracked within the panel. While classic Bluetooth over-ear headphones are still very popular with consumers, headphones that are particularly suitable for use during sport are also in high demand. According to the GfK retail panel, a total of around 197,000 Bluetooth in-ear true wireless headphones were sold in the period.

In addition to headphones, the opportunity to use other products wirelessly is proving to be important to consumers. Wireless speakers also continue to experience positive growth in sales volume. Sales in this segment stood at around 315 million euros, which represents an increase of roughly 15 percent compared to the same period in the previous year. An upturn in revenue and sales has also been observed for multiroom products.

GfK anticipates that the audio market will experience additional growth in 2018 and will benefit from further innovations and advancements. It remains interesting to observe how above all the new smart speakers with voice control will have an impact on the market this year.