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Time of India
19-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Xiaomi India revenue falls 45% despite premium push
New Delhi: Chinese major Xiaomi's wholesale revenues from smartphone sales in India plunged 45% on-year in the March quarter, despite a shift in the erstwhile market leader's strategy to focus on the premium segment, underscoring the turmoil at the company in its second largest market by volumes. According to data from market research firm Canalys, exclusively available to ET, Xiaomi's revenues (excluding GST) from smartphone sales fell to $47.2 million in Q1 2025, from $85.3 million in Q1 2024. The company's shipment volumes also fell a sharp 38% on-year during the period to 4 million in the January-March quarter-moving out of the top five from the first time since Q3 2016-as it struggled to clear inventories accrued from the previous quarters. Despite its active efforts to penetrate higher price segments, Xiaomi's average selling price has in fact fallen 12% to $118 in the March quarter, data from the market tracker showed. This comes after the company charted a comeback in 2024 by streamlining its portfolio and expanding offline retail presence. Xiaomi's volumes grew 6% in 2024, outpacing the overall market growth, while its revenues from smartphone sales rose 18% on-year. But the company hasn't been able to sustain that. Market trackers attributed the sharp fall in revenues and volumes since the start of 2025 to the company facing intense competition in the budget segment where it had a historical stronghold, coupled with challenges in penetrating the premium segment where it wants to focus on. "While Xiaomi states it is aiming to go premium and their leadership talks about premiumisation, the market data, specifically the falling ASPs driven by volumes in the budget segment, suggest that they are still a budget brand," said Sanyam Chaurasia, senior analyst, Canalys. He added that increasing ASPs will require a branding revamp, which involves channel partners convincing customers of the premium quality of products and ecosystem, where the company is currently faltering. Xiaomi, however, argues that the volume drop is according to the company's plans on streamlining its portfolio to focus on profitable growth of market share instead of simply chasing volumes in a declining smartphone market. "The focus is on revenue and profitability for long-term sustenance, considering the overall business beyond just smartphones. Selling many low-priced phones might increase volume market share, but not necessarily revenue," Sudhin Mathur, chief operating officer, Xiaomi India, told ET. Mathur admitted that a majority of its volumes still come from the sub-Rs 15,000 price segment where the company has a stronghold, but growing its presence in the premium segment is now the focus. "There is still a long way for us, but we are very confident that in the next 8-10 quarters, you will see many more product offerings that will come from us, which will strengthen our position in the premium segment," Mathur said. He added that the company's recent premium devices have received a better-than-expected reception, which is helping improve the brand perception and salience. Offline retailers, however, allege that Xiaomi's presence in retail stores is shadowed by its rivals, which is contributing to the company's declining sales. "Xiaomi sales promoters are not showing much interest in employment with Xiaomi due to pressure from the brand to improve its premium mix, amidst lower salaries and incentives as compared to Vivo and Oppo," said Kailash Lakhyani, chairman, All India Mobile Retailers Association, which represents over 150,000 mobile phone retailers.
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Xiaomi India's revenue slumps 45% in March quarter despite premium push
New Delhi: Chinese major Xiaomi 's wholesale revenues from smartphone sales in India plunged 45% on-year in the March quarter, despite a shift in the erstwhile market leader's strategy to focus on the premium segment, underscoring the turmoil at the company in its second largest market by volumes. According to data from market research firm Canalys , exclusively available to ET, Xiaomi's revenues (excluding GST) from smartphone sales fell to $47.2 million in Q1 2025, from $85.3 million in Q1 2024. The company's shipment volumes also fell a sharp 38% on-year during the period to 4 million in the January-March quarter—moving out of the top five from the first time since Q3 2016—as it struggled to clear inventories accrued from the previous quarters. Despite its active efforts to penetrate higher price segments, Xiaomi's average selling price has in fact fallen 12% to $118 in the March quarter, data from the market tracker showed. This comes after the company charted a comeback in 2024 by streamlining its portfolio and expanding offline retail presence. Xiaomi's volumes grew 6% in 2024, outpacing the overall market growth, while its revenues from smartphone sales rose 18% on-year. But the company hasn't been able to sustain that. Market trackers attributed the sharp fall in revenues and volumes since the start of 2025 to the company facing intense competition in the budget segment where it had a historical stronghold, coupled with challenges in penetrating the premium segment where it wants to focus on. 'While Xiaomi states it is aiming to go premium and their leadership talks about premiumisation, the market data, specifically the falling ASPs driven by volumes in the budget segment, suggest that they are still a budget brand,' said Sanyam Chaurasia, senior analyst, Canalys. He added that increasing ASPs will require a branding revamp, which involves channel partners convincing customers of the premium quality of products and ecosystem, where the company is currently faltering. Xiaomi, however, argues that the volume drop is according to the company's plans on streamlining its portfolio to focus on profitable growth of market share instead of simply chasing volumes in a declining smartphone market. 'The focus is on revenue and profitability for long-term sustenance, considering the overall business beyond just smartphones. Selling many low-priced phones might increase volume market share, but not necessarily revenue,' Sudhin Mathur, chief operating officer, Xiaomi India , told ET. Mathur admitted that a majority of its volumes still come from the sub-Rs 15,000 price segment where the company has a stronghold, but growing its presence in the premium segment is now the focus. 'There is still a long way for us, but we are very confident that in the next 8-10 quarters, you will see many more product offerings that will come from us, which will strengthen our position in the premium segment,' Mathur said. He added that the company's recent premium devices have received a better-than-expected reception, which is helping improve the brand perception and salience. Offline retailers, however, allege that Xiaomi's presence in retail stores is shadowed by its rivals, which is contributing to the company's declining sales. 'Xiaomi sales promoters are not showing much interest in employment with Xiaomi due to pressure from the brand to improve its premium mix, amidst lower salaries and incentives as compared to Vivo and Oppo,' said Kailash Lakhyani, chairman, All India Mobile Retailers Association, which represents over 150,000 mobile phone retailers. But Xiaomi's Mathur called the move strategic. "This strategic change is designed to ensure more equitable value creation for both the brand and our partners, with a sharper focus on driving higher-value sales over pure volume," Mathur said. He added that the move aligns with the broader goal of accelerating the premiumisation of Xiaomi's product portfolio. Lakhyani added that the company recently changed its sell-out schemes for retailers from volume-based incentives to value-based, giving retailers little time to adapt. 'If a retailer's average sales volume over the past three months is 50 units, with an average value of ₹6 lakh, Xiaomi should ideally set the target at ₹6.5 lakh. Instead, they directly set a target of ₹7.5 lakh with no revisions entertained,' Lakhyani said.
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Xiaomi India revenue falls 45% despite premium push
New Delhi: Chinese major Xiaomi's wholesale revenues from smartphone sales in India plunged 45% on-year in the March quarter, despite a shift in the erstwhile market leader's strategy to focus on the premium segment, underscoring the turmoil at the company in its second largest market by volumes. According to data from market research firm Canalys, exclusively available to ET, Xiaomi's revenues (excluding GST) from smartphone sales fell to $47.2 million in Q1 2025, from $85.3 million in Q1 2024. The company's shipment volumes also fell a sharp 38% on-year during the period to 4 million in the January-March quarter-moving out of the top five from the first time since Q3 2016-as it struggled to clear inventories accrued from the previous quarters. Despite its active efforts to penetrate higher price segments, Xiaomi's average selling price has in fact fallen 12% to $118 in the March quarter, data from the market tracker showed. This comes after the company charted a comeback in 2024 by streamlining its portfolio and expanding offline retail presence. Xiaomi's volumes grew 6% in 2024, outpacing the overall market growth, while its revenues from smartphone sales rose 18% on-year. But the company hasn't been able to sustain that. Market trackers attributed the sharp fall in revenues and volumes since the start of 2025 to the company facing intense competition in the budget segment where it had a historical stronghold, coupled with challenges in penetrating the premium segment where it wants to focus on. "While Xiaomi states it is aiming to go premium and their leadership talks about premiumisation, the market data, specifically the falling ASPs driven by volumes in the budget segment, suggest that they are still a budget brand," said Sanyam Chaurasia, senior analyst, Canalys. He added that increasing ASPs will require a branding revamp, which involves channel partners convincing customers of the premium quality of products and ecosystem, where the company is currently faltering. Xiaomi, however, argues that the volume drop is according to the company's plans on streamlining its portfolio to focus on profitable growth of market share instead of simply chasing volumes in a declining smartphone market. "The focus is on revenue and profitability for long-term sustenance, considering the overall business beyond just smartphones. Selling many low-priced phones might increase volume market share, but not necessarily revenue," Sudhin Mathur, chief operating officer, Xiaomi India, told ET. Mathur admitted that a majority of its volumes still come from the sub-Rs 15,000 price segment where the company has a stronghold, but growing its presence in the premium segment is now the focus. "There is still a long way for us, but we are very confident that in the next 8-10 quarters, you will see many more product offerings that will come from us, which will strengthen our position in the premium segment," Mathur said. He added that the company's recent premium devices have received a better-than-expected reception, which is helping improve the brand perception and salience. Offline retailers, however, allege that Xiaomi's presence in retail stores is shadowed by its rivals, which is contributing to the company's declining sales. "Xiaomi sales promoters are not showing much interest in employment with Xiaomi due to pressure from the brand to improve its premium mix, amidst lower salaries and incentives as compared to Vivo and Oppo," said Kailash Lakhyani, chairman, All India Mobile Retailers Association, which represents over 150,000 mobile phone retailers.
Economic Times
21-04-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Smartphone market likely to see tepid demand in FY26
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads A tariffs-driven slowdown in global trade could dent Indian consumption, leading to likely circumspect demand for smartphones through FY26, analysts said. A lukewarm March quarter further shortens the odds FY26 would mark a second consecutive year of uninspiring growth. Apple is expected to gain market share, however, breaking into the top five for the second straight quarter, with China's Vivo maintaining its lead at the top, said market tracker Canalys."If the US market experiences a slowdown due to tariffs, it could lead to reduced purchases of various products including those from India such as IT services, textiles, and agricultural goods," said Sanyam Chaurasia, analyst at Canalys."This could eventually have a cascading effect on the Indian economy and potentially impact consumer sentiment and demand in the long term," Chaurasia said, adding that a demand crunch will be more acute in the second half of the year, if the tariffs said they may lower their forecast for the year after initially expecting low single-digit growth in India shipments, after a tepid first quarter where shipments are likely to have declined in mid-single-digits, making it the second consecutive quarter of a fall in the full year, experts predicted an indirect impact on shipment volumes in India stemming from a potential global economic slowdown due to decreased US demand for Indian market analyst who did not wish to be named said if the Indian economy takes a hit, leading to job losses in India, it will have a negative impact on the sale of every product, not just smartphones. In such a scenario, consumers are expected to hold off their purchases and increase effect of tariffs notwithstanding, the smartphone market was expected to be either flat or grow marginally from last year due to a lack of growth drivers."The replacement cycle driven by 5G networks is now largely over, and there isn't any significant innovation driving new demand. There's also very little migration happening from the feature phone segment to smartphones due to its higher costs," said Navkendar Singh, associate vice president, IDC India said it forecast not more than 2-3% growth for the current year, and even that is considered optimistic, with flat growth a possibility due to the absence of significant growth levers."The market dynamics have shifted to one where channels are pushing products to consumers. Brands which have invested heavily in strengthening the sales channels are seeing growth, while those relying on products alone are facing difficulties," Chaurasia said the gap among the top three has increased in the first quarter, with Vivo doing exceptionally well, crossing 7 million units in shipments, as compared to second-placed Samsung and Oppo, which shipped around 5 million units in the first quarter of volumes in Q1 were dragged further by a sharp decline in Xiaomi's shipments to around 4 million, from 5.1 million a year ago, as it faced intense competition in both the entry-level and mid-range price segments. Xiaomi may miss out on coming in the top five in Q1, Canalys said."Lower product competitiveness and weak channel push due to less competitive margins compared to other brands has resulted in a sharp fall in Xiaomi's volumes," Canalys said shipments in the January-February period declined 8.1% on-year, with Samsung seeing a sharp 19.5% fall in shipments. Apple though remained a bright spot for the market, with volumes growing 36% on-year. The company is set to have a record Q1 with over 3 million units shipped. It may even break into the top five brands for the first time in a quarter in India.
Time of India
21-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
India's smartphone shipments drop 8% in 1Q25; Vivo retains top position: Canalys
New Delhi: India's smartphone shipments fell 8 per cent year-on-year in the January-March quarter of 2025 to 32.4 million units, mainly due to persistent weakness in consumer demand and an elevated channel inventory from late last year, according to the latest research data released by Canalys on Monday. 'This inventory overhang disrupted product launch cycles and forced recalibration of channel strategies,' the market tracker said. At the same time, the evolving landscape of the tariffs imposed by the Donald Trump-led US government will strengthen India's position in the global smartphone value chain, but demand volatility is expected to test the market in the coming quarters, according to Canalys. In Q1 2025, Vivo retained the top spot with 7 million shipment units and a 22 per cent market share, further widening its lead over the second-ranked South Korean Samsung , which shipped 5.1 million units for a 16 per cent share, according to Canalys data. Xiaomi followed in the third position with 4 million units and a 12 per cent share, while Oppo (excluding OnePlus) and Realme shipped 3.9 million units and 3.5 million units, respectively. India's smartphone shipments and annual growth Canalys Smartphone Market Pulse: Q1 2025 Vendor Q1 2025shipments (million) Q1 2025 marketshare Q1 2024 shipments (million) Q1 2024 market share Annual growth vivo 7.0 22 per cent 6.2 18 per cent 13 per cent Samsung 5.1 16 per cent 6.7 19 per cent -23 per cent Xiaomi 4.0 12 per cent 6.4 18 per cent -38 per cent OPPO 3.9 12 per cent 3.7 10 per cent 5 per cent realme 3.5 11 per cent 3.4 10 per cent 3 per cent Others 8.9 27 per cent 8.9 25 per cent -1 per cent Total 32.4 100% 35.3 100% -8% Note: Xiaomi estimates include sub-brand POCO. OPPO excludes OnePlus. Percentages may not add up to 100 per cent due to rounding. Source: Canalys Smartphone Analysis (sell-in shipments), April 2025 Of the top five vendors, Xiaomi showed the highest fall in shipments, at 38 per cent year-on-year, in the quarter, whereas Samsung's shipments fell by 23 per cent year-on-year. 'With consumer demand still fragile, 2025 is shaping up to be another channel-driven year,' said Sanyam Chaurasia, a senior analyst at Canalys. 'In the absence of strong organic pull, vendors are relying heavily on retail and distribution networks to stimulate purchases. Channel schemes, offline activations and tighter sell-out coordination will again define share gains.' In the March 2025 quarter, Vivo extended its lead with a balanced portfolio and sharp channel execution, with its V50 series, T- and Y-series ensuring a strong online-offline synergy, as per Chaurasia. 'Meanwhile, Realme regained momentum following an inventory correction, with nearly 20 per cent of shipments driven by the new 14X 5G and offline channels now contributing 58 per cent of its volume,' he added. With a softening in the broader demand, premium brands Apple and Samsung are anchoring their strategies around upgrade intent and higher average selling price (ASP) plays, as per Chaurasia. 'Apple achieved its best-ever Q1 in India, driven by strong iPhone 16 series momentum and compelling offers across ecommerce and large format retailers (LFRs) during Republic Day promotions. The introduction of the iPhone 16e allowed Apple to deepen its reach into Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities,' he said. Despite starting the quarter with elevated inventory and a 23 per cent year-on-year drop in total shipments, Samsung witnessed 5 per cent annual growth in its S25 series versus S24 in Q1 2024, driven by premium momentum and conversational AI features, the analyst said. 'For both brands, ecosystem stickiness and premium-led channel execution will be key strategic levers in the coming quarters,' he added. With limited organic growth drivers and reliance on channel dynamics, the India smartphone market is expected to grow modestly in 2025. 'Still, rising ASPs and financing-backed premiumization present a silver lining, with the sweet spot shifting toward the Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000 (approximately US USD 250 to US USD 350) price band,' Chaurasia said.
