It’s official: Xiaomi is looking to enter the lucrative but evasive western smartphone market. The company however is keen on taking baby steps; after announcing a direct-to-consumer online store for the US market (which opens shop later this year), the fast-growing Chinese company is now looking to do something similar in European markets.
According to company VP and international face Hugo Barra, Xiaomi will “sell a small number of its hero accessories” in Europe, direct via Mi.com. These ‘hero accessories’ include the Xiaomi power banks which everyone has taken a liking to, the Mi Band, which happens to be an entry-level wearable, and then their earphones and studio-grade headphones.
Here’s what Hugo had to say about the development:
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Other than the aforesaid, Barra also added that plans of entering the US market (with smartphones) is “nowhere near the top of Xiaomi’s priority for now”. Guess US buyers will have to rely on resellers for their dose of Xiaomi. This comes just days after Xiaomi said that it would take action against illegal resellers that often try to mislead buyers.
[ Source, Via]
It’s better than nothing, hopefully these items cost about the same as in China. Even if you consider tax in Europe (around 20%), then it is still cheaper than what resellers are asking for these accesoires.
I’d say they’re doing this just to build brand awareness abroad more than anything.