Alexander Dehmel, Head of Market Intelligence Germany and Austria at GfK, presented GfK’s recent research on the question: What impacts consumers in early 2022?

The studies indicate that there are a range of drivers that impact consumers. Among said drivers is the war in Ukraine, rising energy costs and supply shortages in fast-moving consumer goods, raw material and supply chain issues, as well as inflation reaching a long-time high. Of course, still affects people and businesses, for example by causing shortages of staff. Dehmel also argued that trust in the economy has dwindled. In general, the economy is facing a crisis, except for Technical Consumer Goods.

Dehmel explained that this sector has always grown in the past, 2022 is no exception. The Covid-19 crisis has led to an increase in electronic goods that is still lasting. Dehmel explained that retail has grown during the last year, with technical superstores and chains seeing handsome profits. His conclusion: in every crisis there is an opportunity. Brands which invest and innovate during a crisis are better off than brands that reduced their investments.

Dehmel suggests the growing demand for electronic goods during the pandemic was partly driven by people’s desire to improve their home environment. Growth was also seen across other market segments and products, such as hot air fryers which jumped 36%, hot air stylers 20% and hair dryers 10% . Now, with the global situation improving, a growing number of people are turning towards styling products. This shows that even when faced with challenges, there are opportunities for companies who invest in improvements that save energy, money and time for consumers.