B.Grimm Carrier (Thailand), the manufacturer and distributor of Carrier air conditioners, expects the Thai market to contract by 5% this year due to volatile weather, monsoons and heavy rainfall in the first nine months of 2022.
Woraset Tantisiriwat, the company's managing director, also attributed the market's contraction to other factors, including weak consumer purchasing power and shortages in component supplies due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
"This year has seen the heaviest rains in the past 10 years, so it has adversely affected the overall sales of air conditioners," he said.
Mr Woraset said Carrier was fortunate as its Thai sales of air conditioners fared well every year, even during 2020 and 2021.
In the first nine months of 2022, Carrier saw revenue from the wall-mounted segment increase by 21%.
The company expects to grow its sales by 10% this year, from last year's sales of over 7 billion baht.
He said the growth will come largely from the company's ability to address the needs of today's consumers by launching two new flagship converter series: the Carrier Color Smart and the Carrier XInverter Plus.
The firm said it aimed to deliver modern designs and lifestyles, energy-saving innovation, and cutting-edge technology to calm clients' worries over high electricity prices.
According to Mr Woraset, with the economy improving due to the tourism recovery and an easing of component shortages, the overall air conditioning market is expected to recover in 2023.
Last year, the air conditioning industry was valued at 39 billion baht, almost on a par with 2020, compared with 36-37 billion baht in 2019.
In a bid to cope with the recovery in demand, the company plans to launch two new models next year.
B.Grimm Carrier is also considering a new warehouse to support future expansion and aims to increase its revenue by more than the industry growth rate each year.
Thailand is one of the largest production bases for Carrier's small air conditioner products.
The company's factory in Pathum Thani exports 80% of its products, leaving 20% to serve the domestic market.