The Hindu Business Line : Sharp renewing strategy to make a mark in India

Recently in Osaka, Japan Japanese electronics major Sharp, which is keen on increasing its market share in India, is optimistic about its future in the country given that incomes are projected to grow and consumers are becoming aware of sophisticated products.

It is drafting a renewed strategy to make a dent in the market — the company has been present in India for over 18 years.

Mr Doug Koshima, Corporate Director and Group General Manager, International Business Group, said the strategy would focus on the specialities of Sharp’s products versus other companies’ brands, expanding distribution to cover the entire country and increasing advertising, bringing electronic media into the marketing mix for greater visibility.

The $27-billion Sharp is aware that its products could be perceived as too expensive for India, and this would be addressed in the communication too, Sharp officials said. However, the prices of LCD TVs — the pride of Sharp and its major focus is its Aquos brand of LCD TVs — are dropping every year vis-À-vis conventional TVs, Mr Koshima said.

Market share

Globally, Sharp has a 12 per cent market share of the 96 million unit LCD TV market. In Japan, its share of the market is between 40 and 50 per cent, actually closer to 50 per cent, as its officials hasten to point out.

To queries on why Sharp is not a very visible brand in India, Mr Koshima said retail chains specialising in consumer durables were largely local, and that the lack of countrywide coverage was a hindrance. The company is not looking at tying up with a single retail chain but will take advantage of the emerging retail brands in consumer durables which promise a national presence (such as Croma and Reliance).

Main difficulties

Sharp will also select strategic locations to start building up its business, maybe the West and the South, he said. Cultural differences and diverse trading practices are the main difficulties Japanese companies face in doing business in India, Mr Koshima said, in reply to a query. However, he said Sharp was not considering cheaper products for India at this stage.

In another press conference, Mr Hiroshi Kusao, Division General Manager, LCD Digital Systems Division IV, Audio-Visual Systems Group, said lowering prices for specific markets could affect the brand image.

More Stories on : Strategy | Market Shares | Consumer Electronics

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Samsung launching new digicams, plans more stores

Parsvnath ties up with ITC arm to run 50 hotels

Sharp renewing strategy to make a mark in India

Media space: It’s where the action is

Company secretaries allowed to advertise services

C2E plans ‘in-tunnel’ ads for Delhi Metro users

Mobile operators use lifetime cards to hook users

Escorts pact with Singapore co

Koutons Retail plans foray into China, W. Asia

Hot Spot evaluating IPO route for future expansion

Corporates look to Gandhiji for brand building

LIC forays into health insurance

Harbinger Group launches FlockPod