Clearing Smog Post Diwali: Air Purifier Market Sees Seasonal Surge

As the festive cheer of Diwali fades away, a concerning reality looms over Delhi — the national capital witnessed a significant breach of the fireworks ban, resulting in a thick layer of smog engulfing the city the very next day.

Despite the 'Diya Jalao, Patakhe nahi' campaign by Delhi government and Supreme Court order restricting firecracker use, revellers engaged in unrestrained celebrations on Diwali night. By 6 am on Monday, the air quality in Delhi was labelled as 'poor,' with an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 286, according to SAFAR data.

Pollution Shield
This happens every year during the festive season when the government restricts burning firecrackers. Still, people do it anyway, which leads them to buy air purifiers later to protect them from this harmful pollution. “Usually, it has been noticed that sales of air purifiers peak post-Diwali and continue through the winter season,” said Suman Lala, Senior Manager, Growth Advisory, Aranca.

Mahesh Gupta, CMD KENT RO Systems emphasised that awareness and severity during the festive/winter season increase the buying and new customers both retail and corporate enter the category.

According to Shravan Shetty, Managing Director, Primus Partners, winter months and especially the festival season, are the key months for air purifier sales, as they contribute to more than 60 per cent of the annual sales. 

Northern Dominance
Lala underlined that the New Delhi-NCR and the adjoining areas are specific regions that dominate the demand for air purifiers. “Their need is more pronounced as the onset of winter brings up a smog situation thereby raising alarm on the deteriorating air quality and indoor air pollution,” She stated.

He added that the sale of air purifiers is largely restricted to the Northern states of India followed by other urban and metropolitan cities including Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, etc. 

Shetty and Gupta also revealed that most of the demand for air purifiers comes from NCR and north India which is taking a lead primarily due to the drop in temperature which leads to higher AQI for these regions.

Seasonal Surge
The air purifier market is comparatively smaller than other home appliance products and is a fairly niche segment, with maximum sales restricted to 3-4 months of the winter season, which is considered as peak periods due to the air pollution caused by way of winter smog and stubble burning. 

“Air purifier manufacturers capitalise on the rising demand by accelerating sales through different channels, especially the ecommerce route which provides them quick and direct contact with prospective buyers and some players tend to provide a wide range of products to suit every customer's pocket,” Lala stated.

To prepare for and capitalise on seasonal fluctuations, companies typically increase production and marketing efforts in anticipation of heightened demand. “We also offer promotions, discounts, or bundle deals during these periods to attract more customers seeking cleaner indoor air,” Gupta said.

Health Awakening
Every year there has been an increase in demand for air purifiers especially pre-covid period with 2019 seeing almost a 60 per cent increase in units sold. The Covid years had seen demand falling due to the impact of Covid-19, Shetty underlined. 

However, there has been considerable uptake in the market with increasing awareness amongst consumers about the major advantages of the use of air purifiers. “Deteriorating air quality is resulting in a paradigm shift where one views air purifiers as a necessity rather than a luxury,” Lala said.

As the air quality worsens due to factors such as industrial emissions, vehicle pollution, and agriculture residue burning, public awareness of the health risks associated with air pollution has increased, She added.

Also, awareness has certainly gone up as people have started making differentiation between Fog and Smog. This awareness has also brought an awakening as people started acknowledging that pollution is deadly and causes serious health hazards, Gupta emphasised. 

Market Dynamics
There are new categories that are emerging within air purifiers. Like Car purifiers which as a category has emerged over the last few years with new models providing it as a standard now and also companies providing them as car accessories, Shetty highlighted.

“Also there is a growing trend of air conditioning systems with air purification built in as an added feature which may see demand for ACs having air purifiers built into it, picking up in the coming year as the importance of air purifiers increases due to decreasing air quality,” he added.

Most of the purifiers sold these days contain High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) air filters with activated carbon, which are effective in reducing particulate matter and harmful pollutants and provide a safer breathing environment amidst the ongoing pollution crisis,  Lala said. 

However, the market for air Purifiers is moving very slowly though people are aware that either the ability or intent to buy is very Low, Gupta stated.

“The demand increases only during winter and in North India. In spite of being aware of the problem, the rest of India seems to be oblivious to this problem and there seems to be no need to buy an Air Purifier,” he highlighted.

Global Air Purifier Market Overview
According to Market Research Future, the air purifier market size was valued at USD 6.3 billion in 2022. The air purifier market industry is projected to grow from USD 7.0 billion in 2023 to USD 13.4 billion by 2030, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.4 per cent during the forecast period (2023 - 2030).

Factors such as increasing health consciousness, improving the standard of living, raising disposable income, and growing awareness regarding healthy living are the key market drivers enhancing the market growth.