Korean Media: Samsung Electronics "Raises White Flag," the Rise of China's Home Appliance Industry Has Finally Become a Reality!
On May 22, South Korean media outlet JoongAng Ilbo published an article stating that Samsung Electronics has officially announced its exit from the Chinese television and home appliance markets. Since 1992, Samsung has operated in China for 34 years. Although Samsung had consecutively held the global television sales crown for 20 years, its presence in the domestic Chinese market has remained notably lukewarm.
According to information on the official Samsung Electronics China website, all household appliance products—including televisions, monitors, air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, dryers, garment care systems, audio equipment, projectors, vacuum cleaners, and air purifiers—will cease sales. Rumors about Samsung’s withdrawal from China’s home appliance market have been circulating publicly within the industry since early this year. It is reported that some local distributors have gradually reduced their inventory of Samsung products since last year.
Stores selling Samsung appliances in China are currently clearing out stock. Some outlets have already started offering discounts ranging from 5% to 10%, while replacing Samsung product displays with items from other brands.
The exit of Samsung Electronics from the Chinese market marks the end of Korea’s era of brand premium pricing. Data supports this assessment: Samsung’s offline market share in China stands at just 3.62% for TVs, 0.41% for refrigerators, and 0.38% for washing machines—a stark contrast to the glory days over a decade ago when Samsung was among the most popular brands in the country.
It is widely believed that Chinese brands have now reached comparable levels in core technologies such as Mini LED and artificial intelligence, matching or even surpassing those of South Korean or Japanese counterparts. While Samsung and other South Korean companies focused on OLED technology, competitors like TCL, Hisense, and Xiaomi successfully penetrated the Mini LED market and gained significant price competitiveness.
China’s corporate offensive extends beyond domestic markets and has also infiltrated South Korea. The robotic vacuum cleaner market serves as a prime example: Chinese brand Roborock holds over 50% of the South Korean domestic market share. Another Chinese brand, Dyson (Dreame), also achieved double-digit market share in South Korea last year.
Despite annual declarations in South Korea’s industrial circles about “achieving differentiation through high-quality products,” no one has managed to stop Chinese enterprises from entering the premium market segment.
Original Source: toutiao.com/article/1865849888442432/
Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author