Barbecue Market Is Growing Hot!

Barbecue grill is usually utilized for cooking food in the outdoor environment.  It is generally made of brick and metals, as they can easily distribute the heat effectively. Precisely, it uses porcelain-enamel, cast iron, and stainless steel.

Types of Barbecue Grills

Before the invention of barbecue grill, people used to indulge in cooking on sheet-metal pan under the burning charcoal, standing on thin metal legs. However, this type of cooking did not provide a good control during cooking, which resulted in undercooked or overcooked food. This led to the introduction of grill that enabled even distribution of food.

In 1952, a welder named George Stephen, working at Weber Brothers Metal Works in Illinois, invented barbecue grill to give more control during cooking food. In 1954, Don McGlaughlin, an owner of Chicago Combustion Corporation, developed a gas grill. Today, the barbecue grill market has not limited itself to outdoor cooking but has also expanded it to indoor cooking. This, in turn, resulted in the development of electric barbecue grill.

Here below are some of the benefits and cons of using charcoal, gas, and electric barbecue grill.

Charcoal Grill

Benefits

  • Burns at higher temperature than gas grill
  • More portable than gas grill
  • Does not flare up while cooking
  • Inexpensive than gas grill

Challenges

  • Messier as it requires more clean up
  • Requires longer cooking session
  • Do not have additional accessories

Gas Barbecue Grill

This type of grill is fueled by propane or natural gas lines.
Benefits

  • Cheaper than charcoal
  • Easier to clean up than charcoal barbecue grill
  • Comes with accessories such as side burners
  • Challenges Flare ups cannot be controlled easily
  • Cannot achieve high temperatures
  • Less portable

Electric Grill

Benefits

  • Can be used outdoor as well as indoor
  • Requires less space than charcoal barbecue grill
  • Easy to clean as they usually have non-sticky grill plates
  • Does not emit any kind of smoke
  • No gas leakage and therefore more safety
  • Gives more control while cooking
  • Comes with rotisserie.
  • Challenges Electric barbecue grills cannot cook food for large number of people
  • Cannot achieve high temperature as charcoal barbecue grill

Even now, barbecue grillers opt for charcoal grills, as it bestows ‘barbecue flavor’ to the cooked food. However, the similar environment can be created with the addition of wood chips in the case of electric barbecue grill.

Recent Launches & Developments in the Barbecue Grill Market

  • Weber-Stephen Products (HK) Ltd

In February 2021, the US-based barbecue grill manufacturer, introduced smart grills to its already existing Genesis and Spirit gas grill lines. The company integrated Weber Connect Technology, which consists of temperature probes, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth connectivity. Its Genesis and Spirit gas grill lines provides instant flip and serve readouts through in-app alerts. Moreover, it helps the griller to know how much fuel is left in the griller tank.

In March 2018, the company introduced its two products in India. The company’s Genesis II Grill, an upright gas grill, has a steering station at each burner to cater to high heat requirements. It is powered by company’s GS-IV grilling engine extending into two products under the Genesis II Grill, which has three-grill and six-grill configuration, ranging between approximately USD 1850 and USD 4900. Weber also introduced Q1400 Electric grill under its product line.

Manish Khandelwal, the managing director of the Indian division, said in 2019 that that the company was expected to witness growth of 300% year-over-year (YoY) for next 10 years. He said that 40% of the company’s products were oriented for commercial segment such as hotels and restaurants while the remaining ones for the household segment. Moreover, he said that the company aimed at  setting up 50 stores in India in 2020.

  • LANDMANN

The company launched a digital Bluetooth thermometer to monitor the cooking remotely through smartphone. In August 2019, the company launched two products under the gas series segment. Its model variant Pantera 1.0 has continuously-adjustable stainless-steel burner. Another model variant, Pantera 2.0, is equipped with two burners that can be utilized for indirect grilling. It is designed in such a way that it can be connected to gas cylinder. Both of the models are made of enameled iron and have electronic ignition features. In the same month, the company introduced ‘offset smokers series’ under the name of Vinson. It is a multi-functional smoker that enables barbecue smoking, direct grilling, and smoking at low temperatures.

The Europe-based company has a wide range of barbecue products under its product line. It has five product series under the gas barbecues segment while it has three product series, dorado, and broiler under its charcoal barbecues segment. The smoker barbecues segment consists of vinson smoker and Kentucky smoker. Additionally, it has various accessories and covers for barbecue grill products.

  • Char-Broil LLC

Char-Broil has a diverse range of products that include gas grills, charcoal grills, electric grills, portable grills, hybrid grills, and outdoor kitchen products. The company also offers cleaning & brushing supplies, grill covers, and charcoal & wood lighters. In January 2017, Char-Broil launched Char-Broil SmartChef TRU-Infrared Gas Grill. The company introduced real-time alerts to monitor the grill by using its smartphone application.

In January 2018, the company introduced Modular Outdoor Kitchen series. It has launched various products under this series. Its 5-Burner TRU-Infrared Gas Grill is equipped with SureFire electronic Ingition, which improves the grilling experience while 3-Burner TRU-Infrared Gas Grill is suited for smaller space.  Additionally, it introduced outdoor stove top, outdoor gas griddle, granite bar top, refrigerator, and corner module under its Modular Outdoor Kitchen series.

Impact of COVID-19 On the Market

The COVID-19 pandemic had disrupted the manufacturing space owing to the imposed restrictions on the manufacturing facilities, which in turn, halted the production for few months in 2020. This encouraged the industry players to restructure their organization, which led to the job loss across the globe while recreated remunerative opportunities for the local players in the market.

  • Online distribution

Barbecue grills major sales were dependent on the retail stores; however, the COVID-19 pandemic changed the overall scenario. Key players started engaging in activities to increase their online presence and started investing in the development of production plants in the foreign countries to ensure smooth flow of supply and demand. Increasing penetration of Internet and smartphones helped major players to grow their brand awareness across the globe and channelize their revenue generation through various online marketplaces such as Amazon, Flipkart, and Lowe’s.

  • New Opportunity

Restaurants and hotels witnessed a strict closedown amidst the pandemic. Even though offices were gradually opening, limited seating were available at hotels and restaurants. This, in turn, encouraged consumers to buy barbecue grills for household space. This factor boosted the consumer segment and industry players leveraged this opportunity by introducing or promoting products that are feasible for home space.

Market Dynamics & Analysis

As per the detailed report published by Growth Market Reports (GMR), the global barbecue grills market was valued at 4,923.0 Million in 2019 and is anticipated to reach USD 7,114.7 by 2027, expanding at a CAGR of 4.9% during the forecast period, 2020-2027.

This market is segmented into types, applications, and regions. On the basis of types, the market is segmented into gas grills and charcoal grills. The applications segment is divided into commercial and household. In terms of distribution channels, the market is divided into online and offline. On the basis of regions, the barbecue grills marker is segregated into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa, and Latin America.

The gas grill segment is anticipated to account for a large share of the market during the forecast period while the commercial segment is anticipated to exhibit a high CAGR owing to the increasing number of barbecue joints in emerging economies such as India and China. Meanwhile, North America dominated the market share in 2019 and is anticipated to continue the trend during the forecast period. This, in turn, is due to presence of major industry players and increasing demand for barbecue grills in the US. According to data published by Statista in 2020, the people in the US bought around USD 1.36 worth of grills in 2019 and the surveys also showed that 68% of people living in the US did not require special occasion to flare up the grill.

Competitive Landscape

Key players of the market are Napoleon, Bull Outdoor Products, FIRE MAGIC, Weber-Stephen, Char-Broil LLC, Kitchen Aid, and Broilmaster. These industry players are focusing on product offerings while integrating latest technologies to improve the overall grilling experience.

Bottom Line

Growing awareness about barbecue grills and rising disposable income in emerging economies in Asia Pacific is expected to drive the growth of the market. However, high cost of the same is expected to restrain the market growth.