November 2025
ertonline.co.uk
ERT ON TOUR 12
Inside HisenseInside Hisense W
hen you think of Hisense, you probably picture televisions. But standing inside the company’s vast European factory in Velenje, Slovenia,
watching ovens and dishwashers take shape and TVs prepared for shipment, it becomes clear that Hisense’s story in Europe is broader, more ambitious, and far more strategic than many may realise. Hisense’s UK journey began with the acquisition of Fridgemaster, a move that instantly gave the brand credibility and retail access in a competitive refrigeration market. It provided a reliable entry-level proposition for retailers, particularly those without own-label ranges, and helped open doors to the likes of AO and a growing network of independents. From there, Hisense advanced with a steady, deliberate focus on designing appliances specifically for British homes. A decade later, the results are hard to ignore. While Hisense is well known for televisions, now boasting a 30.6 per cent UK market share, the brand’s real momentum is in major domestic
Hisense invited ERT Editor Will McGill on a trip to its Gorenje factory in Velenje, Slovenia, seeing firsthand how the brand has grown its appliance business, developing products for European markets, and investing in manufacturing and innovation.
appliances. Refrigeration was re-engineered with the UK’s preferred 50/50 split; Hisense introduced the first 80cm multi-door model for the British market; laundry expanded with slim 12kg machines and high-efficiency washer- dryers, giving Hisense the number-one position in that category.
GfK data shows the brand is now the UK’s
third-largest appliance manufacturer. From January to June, Hisense achieved around 3 per cent value and volume growth, outperforming a market that has largely stagnated. Cooking is up 133 per cent, dishwashing 50 per cent, and refrigeration 17 per cent. Among independents, Hisense has already reached its 4.6 per cent refrigeration market-share target for the year, ahead of schedule.
Factory floor Walking the production lines in Slovenia, the scale and sophistication behind this growth become clearer. The ovens and dishwashers built here
handling models manufactured in China, offers a fascinating view of Hisense’s global supply chain in action: Chinese manufacturing scale combined with European logistics expertise to serve the continent quickly and efficiently. For UK retailers, this level of European focus
reflect European engineering
priorities around efficiency, precision and reliability. Meanwhile, the TV packaging line,
is already filtering into the product range. Hisense’s Kitchen Fit refrigeration, designed for a flush cabinet look without losing capacity, is a solution built with compact British kitchens in mind. The brand is also expanding in premium refrigeration, already holding around 35 per cent of that UK segment, and developing larger, smarter models with integrated touch controls. Leaving the factory, one thing is unmistakably clear: Hisense is not simply selling into Europe; it is building a long-term European ecosystem of manufacturing and logistics. For the UK market, the result is a portfolio shaped by local insight, backed by European engineering, and strengthened by global scale. Ten years on, Hisense’s rise is no coincidence, and judging by what’s happening in Slovenia, the next decade may be even more transformative.
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