Panasonic looks to the future after another successful year cooling the GCC

Every member of the GCC saw Panasonic's Air-conditioner sales increase from between 120% in Kuwait to 200 percent in Iran.

The UAE saw Panasonic increase sales by 130%, while Oman saw a 165% jump in sales on 2006.

Across the entire GCC region, Panasonic experienced a 124% increase over the last year resulting in a 12% share of the total air-conditioning market.

Abby Thomas, Product Manager, Panasonic Marketing Middle East says that these increases are a direct result of Panasonic expanding its line up and introducing new products into the market.

'We've been able to reach out to more businesses and markets due to the larger capacity of some of our new air-conditioning units,' he said.

'The 124%t sales increase in the GCC makes us the fourth largest supplier of air-conditioning units in terms of market share for the Split Category. In 2008 we hope to increase these figures further to place us at number three, which would mean a 15% market share.'

To facilitate Panasonic's planned market share capture, Thomas says the up coming e-ion Air Purification system release will be a major factor.

The e-ion Air Purification System is the first of its kind in the industry and is designed specifically for the GCC market. It provides air purifying capability proven to be 10% better than any other air-con unit currently available.

The increasing effects of Global Warming on this region have led to the product development of these air-con units, to make them highly efficient even at extreme temperatures of 55 degree Celsius.

'The new system is the most energy efficient on the market and features a compressor designed to withstand the extreme climatic conditions that are so prevalent in this part of the world,' says Thomas. 'This combination of efficiency, purification with cooling makes for one of our unique selling points that will contribute to Panasonic's growing presence in the air-conditioning market.'