As users pay more attention to the health and comfort of their home environment, air conditioning products and technologies that specifically meet the needs of细分家庭场景are constantly improving. Kitchen-specific air conditioning solutions are also receiving increasing attention from the industry, providing manufacturers with new growth opportunities.

As early as 2014, Daikin launched a built-in indoor unit specifically designed for kitchens in the Chinese market to meet the cooling and heating needs of kitchen spaces, filling the gap in the central air conditioning sector for kitchen-specific solutions.

Zhang Jianhua, the director of the North China residential retail division of Daikin (China) Investment Co., Ltd., told the Modern Home Appliance Network that Daikin's central air conditioning has established a strong market influence and user trust among high-end users in the Chinese market. For kitchen-specific embedded indoor units, after more than a decade of promotion, the matching rate of kitchen-specific indoor units among Daikin central air conditioning users in first-tier cities such as Beijing and Guangzhou has reached about 20%. However, in most other cities, the matching rate is only about 10%, and this ratio has remained significantly unchanged for many years, reflecting the regional development disparities of kitchen air conditioning.

Relatively speaking, Daikin serves mainly high-end users in the Chinese market, especially dominating the high-end market in first- and second-tier cities. The proportion of Daikin中央空调 users choosing kitchen-specific indoor units also indirectly reflects the penetration pattern of the high-end market for kitchen air conditioners, which might also indicate a potential breakthrough threshold for kitchen manufacturers targeting the mass market.

Certainly, looking at the overall household air conditioning market, based on industry data for the natural year, the domestic sales volume of air conditioners in 2024 reached 104.448 million units. Even if we only consider the kitchen air conditioning installation rate of Daikin central air conditioning users in first-tier cities like Beijing and Guangzhou, it could generate an incremental market of over 10 million units annually. This figure does not yet account for the secondary growth potential from renovations of existing homes. Therefore, the industry's potential for growth is enormous.

Zhang Jianhua believes that the popularity of kitchen air conditioning is essentially a reflection of the improvement in quality of life. Most of the users served by Daikin are owners of villas and large apartments, who have clear demands for functional zoning in the kitchen. Some users choose to install dedicated air conditioning units in the kitchen, while those with open kitchens tend to prefer using oil-free appliances, opting to install air conditioning outlets in the dining area to address the heating and cooling issues in the kitchen by increasing the load on the dining area air conditioning.

In essence, driven by consumption upgrading, kitchen air conditioning is not just about equipment configuration but also a concrete expression of lifestyle.

Currently, the central air conditioning industry has entered a deep operational phase in the stock market. In China, there are over 40 million central air conditioning users nationwide. However, the proportion of users equipped with dedicated kitchen modules is not very high. For users who have already installed central air conditioning, achieving breakthroughs in size and structural design as well as installation process convenience could unleash significant demand potential among existing central air conditioning users.

At the same time, in first-tier cities like Beijing and Shanghai, central air conditioning is gradually entering the market for medium and small-sized apartments. While a high-end positioning is a core advantage for Daikin, the company is also actively exploring ways to reach the mass market, aiming to extend the application scenarios of central air conditioning to medium and small-sized apartments, allowing more consumers to enjoy a more comfortable and healthier upgraded lifestyle.

Currently, there is an increasing variety of kitchen air conditioners on the market to better meet the demands of both new installations and existing renovations. Regardless of the type of product, it is closely related to the structure of users' kitchens and ultimately depends on user needs. For existing housing users, due to the special nature of the kitchen setting, the choice of kitchen air conditioners will be more focused on cost-effectiveness and installation convenience. For users, a kitchen air conditioner is not merely about adding a device; it involves a systematic project that includes spatial design, technical adaptation, and user habits. The industry needs to work together to build a complete ecosystem, from product development to user education, from channel layout to service guarantees.

Overall, the market and consumer environment faced by air conditioning manufacturers this year remain complex. Xiaomi, known for its high cost-performance ratio, also launched the Mijia Central Air Conditioner by the end of 2024, indicating that price competition will become even more intense. For brands with extensive channels and market coverage, adding kitchen air conditioning as a new category can relatively easily meet the bottom line of production costs. However, for companies with insufficient scale, investing separately in kitchen air conditioning production may face the risk of initial losses.

Especially from a technological R&D perspective, developing kitchen air conditioners is more challenging than other types of air conditioners, as they must possess features like dehumidification and oil-resistant panels. For example, Daikin's first central air conditioning indoor unit specifically designed for kitchens in the Chinese market uses panels made of oil-resistant resin and oil-proof coatings, making them easy to clean with warm water. The unit also features specialized fins with wider spacing and smooth surfaces to prevent oil buildup, along with an internal high oil-resistant and anti-mold filter, addressing common user concerns.

Therefore, enterprises should prioritize the research, development, and accumulation of technologies such as temperature and humidity control, as this is the foundation for kitchen air conditioning products to maintain a competitive edge in the market.