Brother International, a provider of printers, targets 15 percent market share in the mono laser category in India by 2015 from the present 4 percent.
The Japanese printer major’s strategy centers around offering Japanese quality products, launching India specific printers, cost efficiency and expanding dealer network.
Globally, Brother International’s 68 percent revenue comes from printers at present. The company targets $7.5 billion revenue in 2015 from $5 billion in 2012.
Brother Innovation
The company will spend around 7.5 percent of revenue on research and development this year to bring out new products.
“New range of 2 MFCs (Multifunction Centers) and 1 Single Function Laser printer, which are especially developed for emerging markets, reflects our focus on innovation and long term growth. Our top priority is to expand in Asian markets,” said Atsushi Iwamoto, general manager, Brother Industries.
Brother India targets
The printer major targets to achieve 25 percent market share in the Asia Pacific region (excluding Japan and China) in Mono Laser category by 2015 from 11 percent in 2012.
Brother has 11 percent market share each in both MFCs A4 and Printer A4 in Mono Laser category in 2012 in the Asia Pacific region (excluding Japan and China). Its market share in Color Laser category in MFCs A4 is 7 percent, while it has 5 percent share in Printer A4, according to IDC.
At present, Brother International has 17 production facilities with 3 in China, 1 in the Philippines and 1 in Vietnam. Facilities in Philippines and Vietnam were started in April 2013.
“There are no immediate plans to set up production unit in India. The company has a software development center in Bangalore. But we are growing our presence in India,” said Yoshiji Matsui, managing director, Brother International India
Brother India Strategies
Brother, which is focusing on SOHO and SMB markets, has already drafted its channel strategy and strengthened supply chain.
Instead of relying on its earlier 2 national distributors, Brother will supply printers directly to 100 plus dealers. The benefits by eliminating national distributors will be invested in promotion and dealers.
The company has 10 warehouses across the country. This apart, Brother has 260 service centers to address consumer demands.
“Customer care centers are managed by us. Recently, we introduced SMS driven customer care. So that our users need not wait to get response from the call center,” said Alok Nigam, GM – Sales, Marketing & Service, Brother International India.
The new range of 2 MFCs (Multifunction Centers) and 1 Single Function Laser printer boasts of being highly reliable, affordable and efficient for home, SOHO and enterprise. The product line-up includes HL-1111, a single function laser printer, while the DCP-1511 & MFC–1811 are the MFCs. These products bring new technical innovations that help customers experience hassle free printing through efficient paper handling capabilities at affordable cost.
Baburajan K
editor@infotechlead.com
