The Philippine Star

Xiaomi re-enters Phl smartphone market

- By IRIS GONZALES

China-based smartphone company Xiaomi is making its presence felt again in the Philippine­s through its official distributo­r SmartFutur­e Tech Inc.

Led by a group of Chinese businessme­n, SmartFutur­e aims to close the gap between consumers and global brands by bridging producers and consumers in both domestic and internatio­nal markets. In an interview with The

STAR, SmartFutur­e chief executive officer Terrence Xiong said the company aims to distribute quality consumer electronic­s, smart home devices and eco products throughout the region.

“We are bringing in hitech brands to the Philippine­s,” Xiong said.

He said these products are not limited to mobile phones but also smart appliances, smart devices and even smart lifestyle and home equipment.

SmartFutur­e chose the Philippine­s to set up shop because of the huge market potential.

The Philippine­s is a huge market of 100 million people and the age structure is very young, Xiong said.

He also said economic developmen­t is accelerati­ng and Filipinos are spending more.

The company, which opened its flagship store in Circuit Makati recently, plans to open 15 branches by 2018.

Aside from the standalone stores, SmartFutur­e is also present in the e-commerce space such as Lazada and Shopee. It also has its own online store for overseas business.

It also provides customer services with a current portfolio of three service centers and plans to put up six to seven customer service centers by 2018.

Aside from distributi­ng top Chinese technology brands, SmartFutur­e will also provide outsourcin­g and offshoring services to the world’s leading internet applicatio­ns and consumer electronic brands.

“We are committed to providing distributi­on solutions that add value to your business and a comprehens­ive national distributi­on network in the Philippine­s. Our network of local distributi­on points and strategic partnershi­ps can ensure product availabili­ty and expedited delivery across the nation,” it said.

Xiong is optimistic that even if the market is already dominated by other world renowned brands such as Apple and Samsung, Filipino consumers would realize that Chinese brands are also quality brands.

“If they see that the brands are very good, they will appreciate the Chinese brands. These products continuous­ly innovate,” he said.

 ??  ?? SmartFutur­e’s flagship store in Circuit Makati.
SmartFutur­e’s flagship store in Circuit Makati.

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