Xiaomi requests more government support for corporate globalization
Lei Jun, founder of technology company Xiaomi Inc and a deputy of the National People’s Congress ( NPC), on Monday proposed that the Chinese government should set up incubators in major countries and regions along the path of the “One Belt, One Road” initiative.
Those overseas incubators would help Chinese firms quickly meet the needs of local markets and better understand local tax policies and rules, Lei told a press conference in Beijing during the ongoing two sessions.
“We encountered many difficulties amid our fast overseas expansion over the past years” that even caused the company some losses, Lei said.
The company was caught in a patent spat with Swedish technology company Ericsson in India when first entering the South Asian nation in 2014. After three years, Xiaomi had become the second- largest smartphone vendor in the market during the fourth quarter of 2016, according to International Data Corp.
Lei told the Global Times on Monday that India will remain his major focus this year.
Xiaomi, which made its name selling low- budget smartphones with many attractive features, started globalization three years ago, when it set foot in seven overseas markets.
Earlier this year, the company made a grand entry into Pakistan, which is widely perceived as a major recipient of China’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative.
Lei emphasized the significance of joining this initiative, “which will guide technology companies like Xiaomi to carry out a new round of globalization.”
The “One Belt, One Road” initiative was proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013, aiming to become a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along ancient trade routes.
More than 100 countries, regions and international organizations have joined the initiative and more than 40 of them have reached cooperation agreements with China, said Wang Guoqing, spokesman for the fifth session of the 12th CPPCC National Committee, on Thursday.
Besides proposals related to the initiative, Lei also submitted motions to the NPC about his visions for “New Retail” and artificial intelligence.
Lei wrote in the motion that the New Retail model is an integration of online and physical stores, a way of improving shoppers’ experiences and efficiency in the brick- and- mortar retailing sector with ecommerce.