Will Distributors Capture the LED Market and Retain Share of Lighting Sales?
David Gordon
Posted On October 6, 2013
Over the past couple of months we’ve seen lots of information on the LED market. While some of it is “educational” in nature and some is research oriented, we’ve also seen a proliferation of information being shared in other industries which indicates that the electrical distribution market is facing more competition for the lighting dollar.
What this means is that distributors, if they want to retain the % of their business that is lighting, need to “up their game” and be much more than a “quotation shop” or “order point” (especially if a lighting agent thinks they control the business) and ensure that they have training and marketing processes in place to continuously educate their salespeople, their branch managers and inform customers and prospects.
Some do this sporadically. Some salespeople are interested in the topic so become self-educated. Some distributors have lighting specialists (and even fewer have LED specialists) and we doubt that any distributor is marketing themselves as the “LED specialist / resource” for their marketplace.
And while it can be a “harder” sell due to the price point, the market is quickly evolving to LEDs and the lighting manufacturers are committed to this space.
So the question becomes, are you, as a distributor, committed to:
- retaining, and maybe increasing, the % of your business that is lighting?
- do you have a plan, and processes (with metrics), to increase your LED business?
- NAILD is hosting a webinar (Oct 8) on the various LED technologies and when to use / not use LEDs. And if LEDs are a focused area for you, you should consider joining NAILD as well as receiving their newsletter A Light Read.
- According to this report the LED market (solely LEDs, not LEDs for lighting) is expected to be a $13.9 billion market in 2013 … and 39% of that market is LEDs for general lighting (which means that the value of LED lighting is higher as need to add the housing to the LEDs)
- AV integrators are LED lighting into their offerings. Are you selling to this market? If not, you can be sure that your manufacturers are looking for someone to reach this audience!
- Here’s a 6 step process from Sustainable Plant advising end-users on how they can get the most from their lighting retrofit
- Here’s a webinar entitled “Controlling LEDs: Hallway to Hallway” that is presented by Cree and promoted through Buildings magazine / www.buildings.com … reaching the end-user! Should distribution attend? It’s scheduled for October 23.
- “Maximize the Potential of LED Lighting with Smart & Simple Digital Controls by Acuity” is a video that was promoted Hanleywood (Builder magazine and Remodeling magazine). Register at the link to see it. Again, reaching the end-user (but do you know about it? could you promote it to your customers?)
- LED lighting market to grow to a $25 BILLION market by 2021 according to Navigant Research. Think about what the size of the lighting market currently through distribution is (less than $25 billion).
- Here’s an article on MDM regarding research that Rexel conducted with end-users on their interest in energy efficiency. In the words of Chris Hartmann, “In just a few years, we’ve made great strides in creating an environment that has facilitated the implementation of energy efficient solutions in both the residential and commercial construction sectors, however, there are still a lot of improvements that can be achieved and it will take the collective effort of the industry, government and consumers alike if we want to make a serious impact to improve our energy efficiency.”
- Graybar, with Acuity, conducted a webinar entitled “Digital Lighting in Data Centers” earlier this year. There is a white paper at this link. (digital lighting being a euphemism for LED?). Again, an end-user initiative, this time driven by a distributor who has involved a manufacturer … leveraging their content. Perhaps more distributors should consider? or multiple non-competing distributors coordinate with a manufacturer?
- Kichler has also sponsored some webinars targeting the builder / remodeler market.
- Check out this website, www.allledlighting.com
- And we know that distributors like Grainger, Anixter, DigiKey, Allied Electronics, Ferguson and others and we’ve seen distributor websites that emphasize LEDs in their url.
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Here’s a webinar from Navigant Research on the subject. The webinar is being held Oct 8 at 2:00pm
The lighting industry is on the verge of a major transformation. Falling prices and improving quality for light-emitting diode (LED) technology have begun to drive widespread adoption of this technology. Navigant Research forecasts that, by 2021, 63% of lamps sold to retrofit projects worldwide will be LED-based. Beyond a simple swap in lamp type, this rise in LEDs is expected to impact every aspect of the lighting industry. The shape and functionality of light fixtures will undergo a radical redesign, while the long lifespans of LED lamps will change how lighting designers and installers think about the integration of light within built spaces, and significantly shift the revenue expectations for lighting providers. Advanced lighting controls will also proliferate as the cost premium shrinks for LED drivers that include dimming, wireless communications, and color tuning.
Featuring senior research analyst Jesse Foote, along with Michael Feinstein, vice president of sales and marketing at Digital Lumens, and Mahima Gupta, associate director at Navigant, this webinar will examine the market changes that LED lights have already wrought, and provide forecasts for the future transformation of the industry. The webinar will also examine how technology startups and established lighting companies are responding to the coming changes
http://www.navigantresearch.com/webinar/leds-and-the-transformation-of-the-lighting-industry
Pfffttt
More industry myopia- the story fails to mention anytning about OLED – OLETs
and the meta catergory of printed electronics – I hope readers don’t
assume just because the last 10 decades were all about the orthodoxy of
edison sockets and ubiquious form factors – that that has much bearing on the reality of the scope of the lighting transition-
It’s more shallow perspective stuff – it won’t be about 120Vac and copper wires
much longer- and SSL that are using inorganic LEDs are starting to seem like
vcrs in this age. The future belongs to lighting products with BoM of low double digits content lists. You would get that from what this story infers- Not a very meaningful article – it’s speculation is minimizing
the reality of how this lighting transition is going to progress- Hint-
If you have stock in a firm that makes edison screw based socket (and wares
that are reliant on ’em) – DUMP Those stocks now – the firms that produce goods like those relics become increasingly inconsequential + more passe each week !
LED lighting makes things so much easier to see. The quality of the light output is greater. Distributors of LED lighting options will definitely be more in demand as the economy grows.
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