Electric garden tools stagnate

The European market for electric garden tools did not grow in 2013. The total number of appliances sold in DIY stores, garden centres and over the Internet was 11.1 million, two per cent less than in the preceding year. The market stagnated in value terms, according to these figures published by Bosch.The decline was even more pronounced in Germany, where the number of units shrank by seven per cent to 2.4 per cent and sales declined by five per cent to € 286 mio. In Austria and Switzerland a similar market trend was observed.The fact that sales have not declined as sharply as the number of units is attributable primarily to the popularity of cordless appliances compared with electric tools. They experienced growth of six per cent, taking their market share to 41 per cent.