Sales of freezers and home office equipment surge as people prepare for potential social isolation
Sales of freezers and home office equipment have soared in the UK as people prepare for potential social isolation due to the coronavirus.
In the week ending 7 March, sales of freezers were up 90% in volume and 71% in value compared to the same week last year.
The most popular category was chest freezers where sales rose by 202% in value year-on-year. Meanwhile, sales of upright freezers increased by 37.7%.
Sales of home office equipment have also surged with sales of office chairs climbing by 13.3% in the period. In addition, sales of office desks increased by 5.1% and sales of keyboards, mice and headsets have also seen growth.
Michael McLaughlin, vice president of retail at GfK, said: “While predicting the full effect of the virus on the markets is complex, fears of forced isolation and social distancing are clearly impacting sales in selected categories. As seen in China, there are likely to be medium term opportunities within online especially, which has already increased to over 42% of market sales for durables in the week ending 7 March.”
