Micromax announced it will re-enter the smartphone business and will launch a sub brand called “in” in India.
Micromax plans to make an investment of Rs 500 crore and will build products from ground-up for the new-age consumers in the country. This will be the re-entry of Micromax into the rapidly growing smartphone business.
India’s Ministry of Electronics and IT last week approved several non-Chinese companies including Bhagwati (Micromax) for manufacturing of mobile phones in the country under the government’s Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme.
“We are delighted to make a comeback in the India market with our sub brand in. When you have the word India or in on you, it gives you a sense of responsibility,” said Rahul Sharma, co-founder of Micromax.
Micromax has manufacturing facilities at two locations — Bhiwadi and Hyderabad. Micromax has a capacity of producing over 20 lakh phones per month.
The Micromax brand is also working on strengthening its already established retail and distribution network.
Currently, Micromax has a retail presence in the form of more than 10,000 outlets and over 1,000 service centres.
Micromax was the top 4 smartphone vendor in India during the third quarter of 2018 after declining for straight 7 quarters, according to research report from IDC.
Micromax, in partnership with Reliance Jio, had won a state government tender from Chhattisgarh government to supply smartphones to underprivileged women and students.
India’s smartphone market registered a decline of 50.6 percent in the second quarter of 2020 to 18.2 million units. Phone makers faced major supply chain disruptions at the beginning of the quarter due to the lockdown.
IDC predicts that Indian smartphone market will show signs of recovery in the second half of the year.
“This will be dependent on brand marketing and channel initiatives. Brand initiatives around multi or hybrid channel strategies will also play a key role as offline partners and brands will be looking for pockets of growth in these crucial next few months,” said Navkendar Singh, research director, Client Devices & IPDS, IDC India.
