Oppo, a China-based company owned by BBK Electronics, is the world’s fourth-largest phone manufacturer. The smartphone maker does very well in China and India, but it’s relatively unknown outside of its established markets. And in regions such as Europe, Oppo and Vivo, its sister company, don’t currently sell smartphones — right now, their devices are only available through various importers in Germany or Europe.
Now, the company has confirmed that it will expand in international markets this year. Alex MacGregor, the company’s international PR manager, told WinFuture that earlier statements made by CEO Tony Chen regarding overseas expansion were true. Mr. Chen stated at the end of January that the company would “speed up entry into global markets” in 2018.
It’s worth noting that a few years back, a few smartphones from Oppo’s Find series launched in Europe.
The company’s strategy for success in emerging markets like India has been a focus on brick-and-mortar retail. Oppo and Vivo still dominate the offline smartphone retail space as far as China-based brands are concerned.
In recent months, though, Oppo’s struggled to contend with China-based Xiaomi’s meteoric rise, due to the fact that it can’t compete with its rival on specifications.
The company’s planned international expansion may help matters, and it isn’t without precedent — Xiaomi has steadily expanded to many international markets over the past few years. It’s unclear whether it plans to adopt an offline retail strategy in international markets or whether it plans to sell smartphones online, and there isn’t a time frame for the expansion yet. We expect to learn more in the coming weeks.
This article was updated on 2/5/2018. Oppo hasn’t currently announced entry into the European smartphone market. However, earlier statements made by the company’s CEO regarding international expansion in 2018 are correct.
Source: WinFuture (in German)