The Indian wearables market which includes smart watches, smart bands and wireless earwear, has grown by a staggering 170.3 per cent in Q1 of FY21 (January to March), according to the International Data Corporation’s (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker.
The IDC report says that this was the highest-ever first quarter shipment in India for watches and earwear. While watches grew 463.8 per cent YoY in 1Q21 to become the fastest-growing category in wearables, earwear grew at 209.3 per cent. The overall wristwear category, which includes wrist bands and watches, grew 74.8 per cent YoY in this quarter.
Altogether, 11.4 million units were shipped in Q1 FY21, IDC India said in its report.
However, shipments for overall wearables fell by 24.9% sequentially in 1Q21, owing primarily to a drop in earwear shipments. Following three-quarters of tremendous growth, the earwear category experienced a quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) decline of 28.6 per cent in 1Q21. This decline can be primarily attributed to the leftover inventory with channel partners as it restricted the fresh buying in this quarter.
“The ongoing consumer enthusiasm for earwear devices demonstrates the category's healthy appetite. Vendors are trying to capitalize on the ride with low and mid-priced devices. This is not only helping lower the category's ASP but also adding improved features to acquire new users,” says Anisha Dumbre, Market Analyst, IDC India.
Product Category Highlights
The wristbands category saw a decline of 22.4% YoY in 1Q21, finishing the quarter with 760 thousand-unit shipments. The category also witnessed a sequential decline of 13.9% as the users continue to migrate to watches. Xiaomi maintained its lead with a 37.3 per cent category share in this quarter. OnePlus, the new entrant in this category, finished second, replacing Realme with a 25.2 per cent share in 1Q21.
A total of 1.4 million watches were shipped in 1Q21, the second quarter in a row to record over a million shipments for watches. Noise continued to lead the category with a 26.7 per cent share, followed by BoAt with a 21.9 per cent share in 1Q21. Being just two-quarters old, with aggressive shipments, BoAT has emerged as a strong player in the watch category.
The Earwear category grew 209.3 per cent YoY with 9.3 million shipments in the first quarter of the year. BoAt, with its multiple devices in its portfolio, continued to lead the overall earwear category with a 29.3 per cent share, followed by OnePlus accounting for a 15.1 per cent share in this category.
The Truly Wireless Stereo (TWS) category grew 284.4 per cent YoY with a 35.0 per cent share in the overall earwear category. This is primarily due to market players focusing more on affordable devices, making TWS devices a popular choice for users.
Commenting on the growth of the Indian wearables market, Jaipal Singh, Associate Research Manager, Client Devices, IDC India said, “From style to health monitoring, the wearables have now become one of the most sophisticated devices in recent times. The category is witnessing a constant shift in the competitive landscape with new players entering the segment.”
Singh further adds, “The second wave of the pandemic has caused a sudden stir across vendors and channel partners, impacting the planned launches to postpone and delay in deliveries. However, over last year, the value of wearables has rapidly expanded, and hence, the demand for these devices is expected to continue strong in 2021.”
