Accenture has been a partner to Electrolux for over three years in growing and enhancing its wine business. Electrolux owns the Vintec brand which specialises in climate-controlled wine storage systems (aka wine fridges). Together with Accenture, they have developed a virtual cellar management app called Oenoby Vintec. Even with a strong global digital presence, managing multiple brands like Vintec brings some growth challenges for Electrolux, especially as competition grows fiercer by the minute. In this context, Accenture aimed to help Electrolux leverage digital strategies to strengthen their competitive edge across all business units.
Cognitive Creators entered the picture as the digital consultancy partner of Accenture. We embarked on a mission to equip Electrolux with a digital growth formula, but first, we needed to understand their current capabilities and limitations. The best way to do that was to conduct a preliminary Digital Due Diligence (DDD) – essentially an analysis of industry trends, competition in the wine fridge market, and macro-insights on rival digital services. This methodology enabled Electrolux to pivot towards a growth-driven digital strategy and leverage digital tools to their advantage.
Imagine stepping into a marketplace where every brand is in a race not just for visibility but for a lasting connection with consumers. Electrolux, a global home appliance market leader, has been running this race for years. But as technology accelerates, consumer expectations rise, and sustainability becomes a priority, the course changes rapidly. Now, even established names like Electrolux face tough digital competition from brands like Bosch, Miele, and Liebherr.
Let’s take a look at the main competitor trends revealed by our DDD analysis:
Now let’s shift our focus to the wine storage market specifically. To get a better sense of the bigger picture, we took a close look at the wine fridge market in the DDD. It’s got great potential: valued at $2.4 billion in 2022, it's growing steadily at 5.3% CAGR, and it’s expected to hit a 6% growth rate by 2030 by 2030. North America and Europe are the largest markets, with the Asia–Pacific region (APAC) close behind.
When Electrolux acquired Vintec in 2016, it brought a specialist brand in climate-controlled wine storage systems to its portfolio. But even though Vintec has brilliant products, its digital presence is still fairly limited, especially outside of APAC. This gap could be holding it back from reaching new audiences and fully tapping into its market potential. To tackle this challenge, Vintec developed the Oeno by Vintec app, a virtual cellar management tool that uses AI for wine label recognition. Yet, despite expectations, Oeno hasn’t significantly boosted Vintec’s revenue, suggesting it may be time to rethink its value proposition.
As we've seen, Electrolux is up against tough digital competition, but there's also huge growth potential in certain areas of the home appliances market – such as the wine storage market. Our Digital Due Diligence analysis uncovered some important insights into the competitive landscape and pointed out where Vintec can step up its digital game to fuel growth.
Today, consumers expect great digital experiences, and new models like Platform-as-a-Service and subscriptions could help Electrolux boost recurring business and grow service income. These trends can help drive recurring business and increase service-based income. By focusing on creating value through digital-first strategies, Electrolux can seriously accelerate its growth moving forward (potentially driving annual revenue increases from 2% to as much as 15%).
A Possible Digital Evolution
Strategic Shift - Turning into a Growth-Driven Digital Direction
We prepared a scalable digital business model for Electrolux, starting with the wine fridge business unit. This combined model integrates digital services with the main business, creating a foundation for future growth across other units. By leveraging digital-first strategies, Electrolux aims to become a trailblazer in the industry.
Using Digital to Facilitate Growth
Our two-pillar model focuses on increasing sales and driving revenue through digital services.
By focusing on these strategies, Electrolux is poised to enhance its digital presence, drive revenue growth, and establish itself as a leader in the digital market.