Small businesses, freelancers, and small office/home office (SOHO) buyers are skipping entry-level consumer models in favour of high-specification hardware that meets their operational needs.

Our latest channel data shows two very different spending trends within the UK and European technology markets. While consumer tech sales in traditional retail remain flat or unpredictable, Average Selling Prices (ASPs) are rising sharply in the Small and Medium Reseller (SMR) channel, which primarily serves businesses with 1 to 50 employees.

The Growing Gap Between B2B and Retail

According to our long-term market tracking, a major turning point happened halfway through 2025. Everyday consumers became highly price-sensitive and reliant on discounts, while small business buyers went the other direction.

The trend has only strengthened in the first half of 2026:

• The 2025 Turning Point: In the second half of 2025, retail chain ASP growth shrank by 0.51% year-on-year. At the exact same time, SMR channel prices jumped by 7.98%.
• The Q3 2025 Gap: Retail ASPs dipped by 0.94% year-on-year, while SMR channel ASPs surged by 9.04%.
• Continued Growth in 2026: In the first half of this year, SMR prices maintained a strong growth rate of 7.56% year-on-year - more than double the retail baseline of 3.15%.
• Peak Monthly Spikes: SMR price growth hit nearly 11% in September 2025 (compared to just 0.57% in retail) and 10% in March 2026 (compared to 5.48% in retail).

A £9 Billion Missed Opportunity for Retailers

Large  electronics retailers are starting to recognise the enormous value of this segment. Industry leaders like Currys PLC are explicitly targeting the 1–50 seat SME space, noting that business accounts spend more and buy more often than everyday consumers.

However, the wider market data shows that specialised tech resellers are still winning the vast majority of these high-margin sales. Traditional stores often fail to showcase the specific features that small businesses are willing to pay for, such as enterprise operating systems, advanced security chips, and commercial-grade networking equipment.

"Small businesses view technology as a revenue generator. When an independent consultant or a 20-person agency buys a laptop or a routing system, they prioritise long-term utility over low upfront cost.

Our data shows that SMR channels are capturing unprecedented premium sales because they understand this structural requirement. Retailers who treat the micro-business buyer like an average consumer are leaving immense margins on the table," says James Bates, Senior Retail Analyst at CONTEXT.

Access the Full Dataset

Capitalise on changes in B2B spending with a detailed look at category-level performance. The complete CONTEXT TotalMarket dataset provides a breakdown by product category and SKU across 12 countries, available now to CONTEXT enterprise clients and channel partners.

For weekly market updates and analysis, join our Retail Pulse Newsletter.