CE Pro August 2022 - 29

one-half of 1%. And for the rest of 2022 and into the first half
of 2023, the news is not much better. Dealers are predicting
only a 1% increase in their commercial revenues compared
with last year.
That low growth outlook is sobering, especially since CE
pros tend to always be overly optimistic. Even the heart of the
housing crisis during which the average integration company
lost more than 50% of its revenues, dealers were predicting
double-digit growth rates. So to see the industry anticipating
such a tiny increase in commercial business is a clear sign of
pessimism. Given that COVID restrictions are virtually nil at
this point, the low growth prediction is likely due to fears of
an impending recession, along with the other pressing issues
previously noted.
However, the data could also be a sign that dealers plan to
focus on their core business, which is the residential space,
given the uncertain economic times. Despite the not-so-rosy
outlook, 97.7% of residential integrators report they did at
least one commercial project over the past 12 months.
Lighting, Cybersecurity Are
Hottest Commercial Categories
The most popular commercial vertical markets continue to be
the " usual suspects " of corporate board rooms, bars/clubs/
restaurants, retail and education. Meanwhile in terms of
equipment categories, lighting fixtures sits atop the list of the
most-anticipated growth categories for commercial work for
the rest of this year, with 21% of dealers citing it as their top
area of growth. The lighting fixture category has exploded on
the residential side of the business and clearly dealers see an
opportunity to become commercial lighting specialists also.
Interestingly, the equipment category that dealers predict
will have the second-highest growth rate is commercial
cybersecurity, with 20.2% of integrators citing it as their No.
1 area of growth. While networks have become a staple, it is
worth taking notice that dealers expect cybersecurity to be
a key element of commercial growth since the category has
yet to garner similar momentum on the residential side, even
though consumer studies from Parks Associates and others
show that wariness of hacking and privacy are among the
biggest concerns from potential buyers of smart home gear.
Video surveillance/access control/intrusion security
systems are also listed by dealers as a prime commercial
category for the rest of 2022 and into 2023. In all, one out of
every five integration companies list security as their top-priority
commercial market opportunity. Enterprise networks,
AV teleconferencing, digital signage and room acoustics are
other commercial equipment categories that dealers expect
to be healthy.
While some integration companies made a deliberate migration
to add more commercial work when the Great Recession
cepro.com
What Does
'Resimercial' Mean?
Once again CE Pro is devoting content on the topic of
" resimercial " business. The loose term is defined as residential
integrators working in the commercial space, as well as
when integrators deploy commercial-grade equipment in a
residential setting.
In this issue's 2022 Resimercial Deep Dive, we present
the results of our second-annual study into the state of
commercial business being done by CE pros, as well as case
studies of light commercial/resimercial projects and best
practices to address networking solutions for resimercial/
work-from-home applications.
The commercial equipment category
predicted to have the second-highest
growth rate for 2022 and into 2023 is
cybersecurity.
RESIMERCIAL FAST FACTS
7.5
Median number of commercial projects predicted in
2022 by residential integrators
$30,073
97.7%
-0.4%
1%
20.2%
6.3%
Median commercial
project revenue
Percent of CE pros who did at least one
commercial project over the past 12 months
Decrease in commercial revenues for past
12 months (May 2021 to May 2022)
Predicted growth rate in commercial revenues for
remainder of 2022
Percent of integrators who believe
cybersecurity is their No. 1 commercial
market growth opportunity
Percent of commercial projects done by
CE pros earning recurring revenue
$53.38
39%
10%
Median monthly fee earned per
commercial project
Percentage of commercial projects
from referrals
Percentage of commercial projects
from competitive bidding processes
August 2022 CE Pro | 29
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CE Pro August 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CE Pro August 2022
