Haier to invest Rs 3,000 crore in India, targets $1 billion in revenues by 2020

Leading consumer durables and electronics brand Haier is looking to invest Rs 3,000 crore in India as it targets a two-fold increase in revenue by 2020.

The company that grew its revenue by almost 50% to clock net sales of Rs 3,500 crore in 2018 is now aiming to rake in at least $1 billion in sales by 2020.

Satish NS

The company has seen a double-digit growth across categories, and is focusing on expanding its manufacturing operations in the market. The brand will invest Rs 3,069 crore in setting up its second industrial park in Greater Noida, Pune being the first under its ‘Make in India’ commitment, said Satish NS, Senior Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Haier India.

In an interaction with BestMediaInfo.com, Satish said that budget optimisation and resource allocation are the two areas where the brand needs to focus to further strengthen its position in India.

Hair has experienced a phenomenal growth in India in the last couple of years. In H1 2018, the brand grew 91% in the refrigerators business in the mid and high segment. In the same period, in the washing machine segment, the company had grown 71% and in AC 48%. In its TV segment, the brand reported 51% growth during January-June period of 2018. The company also registered 136% growth in the water heaters segment, 41% in microwave ovens and 33% in deep freezers in H1 2018.

The brand is now hoping that increased rural electrification, maximised lifestyle aspirations and higher disposable income in smaller towns will lead the growth for the company. The company is banking on its innovative line of products to capitalise on this opportunity. The brand claims to offer value-driven proposition to its customers.

Driven by ‘Customer inspired innovation’, in November 2018, the brand inaugurated its first smart home solutions store in New Delhi. Its motto of ‘Inspired Living’ has helped the brand design many innovative products for consumers like bottom mounted refrigerators, double drum washing machines, self-cleaning technology air conditioners.

Print and TV to get lion's share of Haier's marketing spend

Having made significant investments in local R&D and manufacturing, the brand has also consistently been increasing its marketing spends.

The brand will pump its advertising monies mostly in print and TV with special focus on cricket and regional. The company is experimenting with parallel marketing techniques on digital, which includes artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Haier's marketing communication involves a 360-degree approach in order to communicate the brand message to its key stakeholders, including consumers, dealer partners, retailers, etc. Experimenting with ‘Parallel Marketing’, which involves machine learning, the brand also engages its customers across platforms like TV, print and digital. It believes newspaper ads are still the most trusted form of paid traditional media.

“Our optimal strategy is to create awareness via traditional advertising and then capitalise on the recognition later via social and digital media. This allows us to start a conversation with more potential customers since they reached a greater number of people through traditional platforms,” said Satish.

In the past, it had partnered with the Unimoni Asia Cup and is partnering with the upcoming India-West Indies Home Series. It believes other strategic brand sponsorships like ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ on Sony channel, ‘Mega Icons’ on National Geographic channel, Masterchef on Star World, Mr. Punjab on PTC channel and a host of other regional programmes will enable the brand to forge a closer connect with the customers in all regions.

Globally, Haier Group has a strong presence across all regions with its own subsidiaries along with key acquisitions in the past of major brands, including GE Appliances, Fisher & Paykel in New Zealand, Candy in Italy, amongst others. The brand had set up Hair India as its 100% subsidiary in 2004.

Info@BestMediaInfo.com