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What Does Vizio’s Popularity Mean to You?
Falling prices, low margins and open distribution make it increasingly hard for custom installers to profit from sales of flat-panel televisions and other video products. Attachment sales, like cabling, power conditioning, furniture and universal remote controls have become a staple addition to any video offering.
One of the reasons video products aren't as profitable as they used to be is Vizio, a manufacturer of low-cost high-definition televisions popular in big-box outlets like Costco, Sam's Club and BJs Wholesale Club.
Vizio, which was named by research firm DisplaySearch as the number one selling brand of HDTVs in the U.S. this past August, is Costco's best-selling TV brand, according to the LA Times.
"They are the most aggressive and fastest-growing TV maker in the market," said Van Baker, an analyst for research group Gartner Inc. "They operate on razor-thin margins and they keep overhead to a minimum. They have very low inventory and they turn their inventory over very fast. They're what Dell used to be."
Research firm iSuppli has just reported that Vizio accounted for 13 percent of all North American LCD HDTVs sold in Q3 of 2007, topping all LCD manufacturers.
How does Vizio's popularity affect you?
Are your customers increasingly looking for low-cost HDTVs, or are you steering them to more exclusive and higher-margin products? Let us know in a comment below.
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2 Comments (displayed in order by date/time)
I say good for them. I have pretty much resigned myself to not expecting to make any margin on lower end panel sales
I have however, managed to still make it worth my while to install these units, and benefit from the sale of quality cables & line condiditoners etc.
By the consumer not having to outlay as much cash for the panel itself, sometimes works in my favor in terms of getting the go-ahead to use slightly better quality speakers and source components.
A majority of my clients, these days tend to shop online for their Plasma & LCD displays, and have them drop shipped to their residences. This is true not only of the cash-strapped shoppers, but also true of the well - heeled clients, who have the luxury of time to shop websites for the best deal.
Ironically, what I have seen lately, is the actual delivery times are somewhat fictional from a lot of the online suppliers…
The last couple of times my clients ordered online - their TV’s came 2 to 3 weeks later than promised!
Companies like Vizio tend to be more of an indirect issue for most custom integrators. While Vizio’s target customer (mass market retail) does not necessarily closely align with the typical integrator’s target customer, the fact remains that companies like Vizio set the market price for flat panel sets as far as customer perceptions are concerned.
Companies like Vizio will always be a part of our industry…I remember the alarming speed with which Apex took leading market share positions in categories previously firmly in the hands of CE manufacturers. But the competitive noise has been amplified recently as a result of the industry switch from analog video technologies to digital, which opened the door to competition from a whole new roster of Asian monitor manufacturers. Companies like Sony, with a high degree of consumer acceptance for their popular “Trinitron” picture tube…now find the field leveled as manufacturers all buy their “glass” from the same suppliers.
If the consumer comes to believe that all flat panel sets are created equal…then we’ll all suffer even more (if that’s possible).
Ted Green
The Stratecon Group, Inc.
http://www.stratecongroup.com