Vivo To Invest Around Rs 8 Bn More In India, Plans Component Manufacturing

Chinese smartphone maker Vivo is looking at a further investment of around Rs 8 billion in India. The company has so far invested around Rs 3 billion in the country with a manufacturing facility in Greater Noida.

The company is the second largest in terms of value in the Indian mobile phone market, with a market share of 18.5 per cent as on September 2018, said Vivo officials, quoting market research institute GfK.

The company, in its presentation as part of the launch of its new mobile phone model Vivo Y95, said, “Having invested more than Rs 3 billion, there are plans of further investments of around Rs 8 billion.”

When asked about the company’s capacity expansion and localisation plans, Nipun Marya, director (brand strategy), Vivo, said, “That is work in progress now. As far as component manufacturing is concerned, we are evaluating that seriously. We will be able to give a confirmation on that in near future. We have not really confirmed whether we will be expanding there (in the existing facility) itself or into a new place, but we will be expanding, that is for sure.”

At present, the facility in Greater Noida has a total capacity of 25 million units annually and it is working at full capacity. The facility currently employs over 5,000 people. In the future, there are plans for expansion. However, the when and where are not confirmed, Marya said.

The Chinese mobile phone manufacturer has two factories in China, one in Indonesia and one in India at present. It also has six R&D centres, together in China and the US, and they are mostly focusing on artificial intelligence and cameras.

In terms of growth in India, the company had a three per cent market share in 2016. In one and a half years, by September this year, this has gone up to 18.5 per cent in terms of value, said Marya, quoting GfK. In terms of value, it is the second largest player after Samsung, which has a 37.7 per cent market share. In terms of volume, Vivo is in the third position after Samsung and Chinese-player Xiaomi.

In the Rs 20,000-30,000 price range in the smartphone market, Vivo has been the top brand in the country in the past three quarters. In the Rs 15,000-20,000 and Rs 8,000-15,000 price category, it is the second largest player, the company added. At present, it has a reach of around 70,000 outlets across the country — including 60,000 general trade, around 7,500 organised trade and around 200 exclusive brand outlets. It also has around 550 exclusive service centres.

The company has reported a growth to Rs 110 billion in 2017-18, as compared to around Rs 60 billion in 2016-17, which is almost a doubling of the revenue. Marya did not comment on the revenue expectations for this year. – Business Standard