“We want to be among the top 3 laptop players in the next couple of years”

How do
you
see the Indian market for laptop business?

The Indian
market is very critical. But for any laptop manufacturer, India is
one key geography to play. We cannot limit ourselves to a tiny ambit
in this issue. Being a huge country, the Indian market is widespread,
it is too diversified with each region having its own market trends
and preferences. What favors a particular section of the market may
not be an option for the other. We are specially focusing on 'BRIC'
which compromises Brazil, Russia, India and China. In China, we stand
second. In Brazil,
our position is one among the top 5 leaders and in India we are
focusing to be the leader in laptop sales.

Explain
the SWOT in India for Asus?

In terms of
SWOT, we have a firm belief on our R&D. We have 4,000 engineers
exclusively working on the same. Our approach is determined after
careful research. This comprises our strength. On the weakness part,
we have been late entrants in this market as a result of which, first
we have to get a firm hold over it as well as take on competition
from the more established brands and focus over regions. As far as
opportunities are concerned, we are expecting a huge momentum of
sales in the forthcoming days and on the threats part, I must admit
that some of the Government policies tend to be overstepping in their
own capacity. As an example, in India, the custom duty is high and
and local taxes are not at all uniform, differing for every region.
The forthcoming regime of GST may be tough.

What
transformations have you seen in the Indian market in recent years?

There is an
eventual difference in every single element of the business in India.
Be it a consumer buying behavior or competition or whatever one may
call it. However, the foremost is the need for the product. In
earlier days, the notebook market was not that high as it is now.
Years ago, the market was cramped only to business users. However,
now we find opportunities in terms of potential buyers in every
section of people.

Are there
any major differences you would like to highlight between the North
and South Indian market?

As discussed
earlier, there is no similarity between the South and North Indian
markets. If the market in Andhra Pradesh accepts a particular CPU or
graphic card, the Tamil Nadu counterpart rejects it completely. Such
is the difference between 2 neighboring states. So, we make careful
plans on strategizing the market accordingly. If one market is too
concerned about the size, another market is concerned about the look
while the other completely differs by its concerns over the price.

What is
your market strategy for India?

We want to be
among the top 3 players in the next couple of years. For this, we
have invested on people, understood the channel community, come up
with channel-related programs and provided good margins to the
channels. We have hired a massive number of human resource in the
channel. We do not outsource any channel-related activity and we
firmly believe that amidst all the marketing initiatives, the channel
is the most powerful aspect of any business. Channel meets customers
directly and they become
the deciding factor for the products.

What are
your views on the Indian consumers' buying attitude? How is it
different from other countries?

In Europe,
customers spend more time on studies and surveys, and on in-depth
researches on products. In the Middle East, the proverb 'One
satisfied customer in 10 years brings you 100 customers' works
well. And in America, customers stress on premium quality. There, the
buying capacity is more and they do not even bother buying a new one
if the existing one does not meet their needs. However, in India, a
customer spends more time in the negotiation process. If the rate we
label on our product is
one major factor, on the other hand, the post-sales services too
demands equal weightage. But the Indian market too does research in
some way before buying. To be precise, a typical Indian customer
expects the foremost quality at good price with added ingredients
like offers and goodies.

Please
highlight your regional flow of business and the concentrations
thereof.

As of now, we
have 1 showroom in New Delhi, 2 in Kolkata, 1 in Mumbai and 1 in
Gujarat. Soon a branch in Kochi will start functioning. Before the
end of the year, we are planning to cover all metros. And in the
forthcoming years, we are aiming to open 10 more stores in different
states. Particularly, in South, we have grown through Kerala. Now we
are working out in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Please
explain your relationship with channel partners in India.

In one word,
I would say it is simply excellent. Our relationship is aimed at
creating a long-term relationship and value and being a key player,
the channel partners know us well. Actually, I would say that they
are waiting for our aggressive plans on notebook strategy.