Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)-Lenovo, a leading manufacturer of PC, laptops, tablets and smatphones has launched their very own flagship store in Dhaka.
The Chinese multinational company has recently acquired Motorola and operates in 60 countries and sells their products to 160 countries around the world, reports hifipublic.com.
Amar Babu, Managing Director of Lenovo South Asian region was present during the launching ceremony of the store. This was also first trip to Bangladesh. He sees Lenovo as a worthy competitor in the local market and hopes the brand will have a significant impact in the country. I got to sit down with Amar and talk about the prospects of Lenovo, particularly in Bangladesh.
We see that the sales of smartphones have begun to overtake that of PCs or Laptop sales. What is your opinion on that?
With notable breakthroughs in the world of technology in recent years, you will see that smartphones have slowly become almost a necessity and much of what can be done on a PC can also be done with a smartphone. We can assume that in a couple of years almost all that you can do on your PC can be achievable on a smartphone. It shouldn’t be misconstrued that smartphones will eliminate the use of computers. For now we can say that there are limitations to how much processing power can be integrated in a smartphone, and users are always looking for faster computers to work with.
‘Protect & Attack’ – the new Lenovo business strategy has gotten us intrigued. How does it work and how well is it doing in the South Asian market?
Lenovo’s ‘protect and attack’ strategy is being followed worldwide. It works by us trying to ‘protect’ our strengths which are to be able to increase sales in emerging markets such as Bangladesh, as well as large enterprise businesses. On the other hand, we attack our ‘opportunities.’ Till now this strategy has been working great for us. If I talk about South Asia, we have become a major player in this region, while being the largest notebook seller globally.
How well has Lenovo done in the first half of 2014?
The last quarter and the first quarter of this year have both worked brilliantly for us. Our position has increased significantly across all segments, esp. in terms of our laptop and tablet businesses. Lenovo is the number one laptop brand in the world, according to several different surveys. We have been able to grow at a very fast pace, regardless of the market being slow recently. Our brand has particularly flourished in Bangladesh. In South Asia, the enterprise business has a tad slow but we have experienced notable growth in tablets and smartphones.
The Yoga, A & S series tablets have been a worldwide success, however it could not garner a similar reception in the Bangladeshi market. Why is that?
Although our brand has seen an exponential growth in portable computing devices in Bangladesh, our tablets have been introduced to the local market only recently. The reception we have received has been great and accordingly we shall invest further in smart connected devices. We have plans of greater market exposure and have opened the first Lenovo flagship store in the capital. I hope to see us as one of the top tablet vendors in Bangladesh.
Lenovo has acquired Motorola, what does this new business move mean for the market in Bangladesh?
Currently Motorola does not officially operate any business in Bangladesh. Given that Bangladesh is such a booming market, Motorola will perhaps soon be introduced to this market. Motorola has made waves in the Indian market, with new products such as the Moto G and Moto E which were specifically designed to cater to this market. This acquisition will help us to compete better in most emerging markets, along with the local players. As we are a full-range player, we compete at the entry level as well. Hence, this deal will aid us to further strengthen our presence.
What is the future of Lenovo in Bangladesh and globally?
Lenovo will introduce several exciting new products in the near future. We have already made a great acquisition with Motorola and will protect that brand and work relentlessly to make it stronger. In 2005, we acquired IBM’s PC business and were faced with a similar opportunity with ThinkPad. All these have helped us to have a wider portfolio. For now Lenovo is focused on utilizing the strengths of Motorola to further expand their growth in the US, Europe, and Asia, including emerging markets such as Bangladesh.
BBN/ANS-12Sept14-6:00pm (BST)