SEOUL, KOREA - Dehumidifiers are drawing ever-rising attention along with an increase in the number of rainy or humid days.
Korea's home electronics industry expects this year's annual sales of dehumidifiers to exceed 1 million for the first time in history as the Korea Meteorological Administration predicted heavy rains and high humidity to continue even after the end of the summer Monsoon season.
Household dehumidifiers have been used mainly in the high humidity areas such as riverside and coastal areas. The domestic demand for dehumidifiers was almost non-existent until Winix released its first model in 2000.
In the early 2000s, the annual sales of dehumidifiers remained at around 10,000-20,000 units, rising to 30,000 units in 2008 and 40,000 units in 2009.
The dehumidifier market, thereafter, has been growing at a remarkable pace, with the annual sales of dehumidifiers rising to 80,000 in 2010, 140,000 in 2011 and 500,000 in 2012. The yearly sales of dehumidifiers will likely to exceed 1 million units this year, with the value of the market estimated at over 400 billion won.