Local gadget distributors unfazed by open market

The opening of the regional market to inter ASEAN trade has not in any way threatened the technology and gadget distribution industry saying Filipino consumers are locally biased.

This is the industry assessment of local technology and gadget distributor Thinking Tools Inc. (TTI), as the Philippine market is now slowly entered by players from other ASEAN neighbors.

"The Philippine market is hard to predict. We are not affected by the entry of other players," said TTI business development manager Chris Tanchan.

For an industry, which is largely customercentric and after-sales service comprise bulk of its business, it is harder for foreign players to prosper here, specifically that Filipinos are biased in terms of choosing their tools' provider, said Tanchan.

TTI, which is one of the largest technology and gadget retail distributors in the country, with 18 branches spread across major markets in the Philippines, is seeing a much thriving business ahead while technology movement is spiraling upward.

What is peculiar about the Philippine market in that in this kind of business, consumers prefer to buy their gadgets from distributor that they can trust and preferably operated by local owners so that they are assured of quality after sales service, he added.

In the recent years, multi-national technology brands opened their own concept stores in the Philippines, but this development does not affect the distribution retail business, Tanchan reported.

In fact, business has seen encouraging growth as the millennials drive the demand for ITrelated products such as PCs, mobility devices and even lifestyle IT products.

"The buying behavior of consumers have also evolved. Before, it takes three to five years before a consumer purchase a new PC or any gadget, but now consumers are willing to purchase an item again after 18 months," Tanchan concluded.

TTI has been in the business for 30 years, founded by its president Wilson Tan. —