Imaging leader Canon, which is committed to the Indian market, sees itself growing rapidly with double-digit profits, and is heading towards the 21st year of its operations in the country. In an e-mail interview with BusinessLine, Kazutada Kobayashi, President & CEO of Canon India, talks about the performance of the company, and how smartphones have contributed to the growth of the imaging industry. Excerpts:

What is Canon’s main strategy for the

Indian market?

This year we complete 20 years in the country with the support of our customers, partners and employees. India is one of our fastest-growing markets in Asia, and we have the constant support from our global leadership to address the needs of the Indian market. We are very keen to spread the culture of imaging across the farthest geographies in the country.

We are focused on strengthening our pillar of regional penetration in the country by extending our outreach among the tier 2, 3 and 4 cities. Our aim is to augment the photography and imaging culture in the country, and introduce technological advancements across business and consumer products. With our experiential retail stores, Canon Image Square, being our way to directly connect with Indian imaging enthusiasts, we have reached a significant number of 244 stores across 117 cities. We are also educating customers with our initiatives such as Canon PhotoMarathon, cross-country roadshows, EOS Nation Seminars and photography workshops, across genres.

Photo Marathon, our annual photo competition, brings the community of photography enthusiasts closer together, while challenging them to push their boundaries and showcase the concept through their own perspective, all under time pressure. We have been receiving good response from across the country for the PhotoMarathon.

How do you rate the performance of the brand?

Innovation and customer delight have been the two core pillars of our brand’s journey in the country. It is imperative to continuously anticipate and address the demands and expectations of our customers. Our 14 per cent growth in H1 2017 against the same period in the previous year is a testament to the trust shown by our customers and partners.

Just like the first half of the year, we are aiming to achieve a double-digit growth at the year-end. My entire team is dedicatedly working towards securing our ‘Vision 2020’, and we are aiming to reach a revenue of ₹3,500 crore by the end of 2020.

What brings you more business — DSLRs, printers or cinema cameras?

In India, we offer an extended product portfolio, including multi-function devices, managed document services, DSLRs, home segment printers, cinema cameras, among other imaging solutions.

Currently, our business revenue is split equally between our B2B and B2C domains – we get 50 per cent contribution each from both the businesses. With our comprehensive range of cinema products such as Cinema EOS C200 or Cinema EOS C700, we have continuously contributed to the development of the cinema industry. This year our focus will also be on professional video and cinema EOS business.

Are smartphones eating into your profits?

We are happy that with the advent of smartphones, the number of clicks has increased considerably. As more and more people are clicking, the market for the imaging industry is also expanding. With the multiplying image uploads on various social networks every moment, the differentiating factor becomes the quality of the images. And this is where a DSLR camera scores heavily. This phenomenon has led to an increased and steady demand for it.

Is there a demand for mirrorless cameras in India? If so, do you plan to promote them in a big way?

The growth prospects of mirrorless camera seems good, but currently we will continue to focus on the DSLR segment, owing to its growing demand in the Indian market. We want this segment to be much stronger by continuously providing quality products to our consumers, and by introducing new technologies in the DSLR camera range. We entered this category in January 2016.

Our mirrorless range has been applauded internationally for being an easy substitute to DSLRs. These, however, are yet to capture market share in India.

Do you think GST will take a toll on sales?

We appreciate Indian government’s move to introduce GST, which seeks to give a significant boost to the economy. It is a great initiative to eliminate multiple levies, enabling deeper penetration of digital services.

The pain of short-term inflation and tax burden on companies will be compensated by gains from transparency in the long-run. We are always keen on endeavours that support progress and development in the country.

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