AgTalk | India to surge ahead in smart-phone market in APAC: Gionee's Vohra

The last couple of years has seen a rapid escalation in the number of mobile phone manufacturers entering the Indian market. While the market was essentially ruled by a handful of players earlier, this is not the case now. Budget-friendly, sleek, and nothing less that present players in the game, these makers are out to offer all the smartness a cell phone requires today! Also, experts say, with the growing smart-phone user base, the market seems conducive for players to enter it.

One such player is a technology company engaged in mobile device Design, R&D and Manufacturing, Gionee, which was established back in 2002. From 2005, Gionee forward integrated itself to do business in its own brand in markets across the globe.

Arvind Vohra partnered with Gionee to launch this brand in India in March 2013 and today heads the brand in the country.

Adgully caught up with Arvind Vohra, India Head, Gionee Smartphones to know about company’s marketing strategy, insights about product planning for the year ahead and more.

Adgully (AG): Share with us Gionee's journey in India so far and milestones achieved?
Arvind Vohra (AV): Gionee has been in India for the last 15 months and has been able to have a patron base of around 2 million satisfied consumers across the country. These Gionee owners are our biggest brand ambassadors. The brand has been able to cut across all the segments and is accepted as an alternate with the freshness.

AG: As you mentioned, Gionee is just about over a year old brand in India, but is gradually picking up well. What according to you made Gionee phones to achieve such growth in India in short period of time?
AV: I will give the credit to the - quality of the product, the distribution model and last but not the least the marketing investments which have worked brilliantly for us.

AG : You've been in this domain for more than a decade now and have also worked with various brands over these years. What triggered the partnership with Gionee phones?
AV: India is an emerging and influential market and is one of the fastest growing smart-phone markets in Asia-Pacific. Gionee is among the top ten brands globally and has the potential to disrupt the existing smart-phone industry with its innovative products, pricing strategies and business plans. Consumers always want to try something new and are always in the lookout for improvised devices. The ongoing market trends show that the Indian smartphone industry holds a huge opportunity and that people are gradually shifting from using feature phones to smart phones. Gionee is a confident brand has the right approach to tackle this growing market.

AG: How the brand is located in India in terms of stores, service centers and also the team size?
AV: We have around 18000 stores which are selling our devices. On the service centers we have 500+ service centers which are up and running and by this yearend we will have 750 service centers.

AG: Shed some light on the kind of spends that went into creating a platform for Gionee phones in India? And also how the brand is positioned in the market?
AV: We have done a marketing investment of around 18 Mn US$ across touch points. We are positioned as the most prudent alternate in terms of functionality and imagery wise we are at par with the other MNC brand.

AG: You've launched various phones in the market and recently you announced the launch of Gione Elife S5.5, World's slimmest smart-phone. Brief us about the recent offering and also how Gionee phones are different from other phones available in India?
AV: We have launched Gionee Elife S5.5 which is the slimmest phone in the world and equipped with an octacore processor and a super amoled display. We were the first one to launch the 16 MP +8 MP phone camera with a DSLR mode with our Gionee Elife E7. The biggest difference which we have created is the quality which we offer to the consumers and the pricing at which the product is offered. We have not been greedy and we are launching the products at the right price.

AG: The brand is setting benchmarks in the category with its TVC's and products. How is the sales been so for and what is Gionee's market share in India?
AV: We are able to add 8000 plus users daily in our consumer base and value wise we have a 3% market share.

AG: In terms of associations, Gionee has recently sponsored Khatron ke Khiladi and is now co-sponsoring Jhalak Dikhlaja on Colors. On digital, you've done campaigns in association with Universal Music and Enrique Iglesias. Gionee Global is been associated with World's Most Popular Soccer League, English Premier League and is Co-Presenter of FIFA World Cup 2014 on Sony Liv. How according to you will such associations and tie ups set a stage to bring in change in the experience of smart devices in India?
AV: Smart phone as a category has got the maximum traction among the youth globally and India is not an exception. Youth follow sports, adventure, movies, music and dance as passion so the attempt has been to connect with youth through their passion. Moving forward we will have much more stronger associations the above mentioned genres and will add few more where the association with the youth becomes much stronger.

AG: With the increasing popularity and demand of smart-phones and innovative devices, do you feel that there is any market left for feature phones?
AV:  Smartphone will lead the market but for the few next years feature phone will contribute a decent size in terms of volume in the total market. Later on the feature phone market which is on a downfall will behave in the same way as the CTV market is doing right now when it comes to TV industry.

AG: How according to you have the business plans and strategies worked in India viz a viz other markets. What are your target markets and TG?
AV: We have India as the second most important market after China and we have a firm believe that if you can do well in both the markets you are able to cater 45% of the total global markets. The whole attempt has in India we have tried to target the youth as they are willing to experiment with a new brand. Giving the right product at the right price is something which is the primary focus for us. Maintaining the high standards for service and giving upgrades and feature enhancement through software updates is also very important part of our plan in India.

AG: What are the plans for near future and also what are the objectives been set to achieve in next two years?
AV: Next two years we want to have a much stronger consumer base. Few clear cut objectives which we have set are - Top 3 brand by value, Service Turnaround time of 48 hours and Strong distribution network.

Arvind Vohra started his careers as Dealer Support Manager at Network Ltd in 1994 and later moved to Samsung Electronics Co Ltd as Business Manager - OA & Wireless Products. He became the VP at Salora International Ltd in 1999 and then worked as Co Founder & Managing Director at Wynn Telecom Limited in 2002.  Today Vohra is Director & Co Founder of RAAGA Associates Pvt Ltd, Trustee at Leukemia Crusaders, Founder and Director of Mars Retailtech Pvt Ltd and Director at Syntech Technology Private Limited. Vohra is a commerce graduate from HR College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai and holds PGDBM Marketing degree from IMDR, Pune. [ By Ranjana Gupta | Twitter: @RGrightsreserve]