Once a volume leader in one of the fastest growing smartphone markets in the world -- India, LG has steadily lost out to a slew of more recent entrants. But, with the ecosystem moving ever closer to a 5G rollout, the Korean tech giant is eyeing a comeback as a major market player.
As part of building up its market share again, the brand has launched an ‘India-first’ range of smartphones (the W range) with which it hopes to woo customers in the hyper-competitive market.
The company made its first gambit in its plan to regain its past glories this week, announcing three products in the W series: the W10, W30 and W30Pro.
While the prices for the first two phones have been announced (Rs 8,999 and Rs 9,999 respectively), the price tag of the W30Pro will be announced later.
The W series will see LG adopt a novel sales and marketing approach, for the Korean brand at least, following its younger peers in launching the series on an online-only mode -- a strategy quite successfully adopted by rivals like Xiaomi, Realme and Samsung.
The first tranche of W series smartphones will be available on Amazon on flash sales starting July 3. The new range will also be made in the company’s facilities in India and the company plans to launch a total of five W series models this year, with two to be launched during Diwali and one in August.
The W series will also mark the start of an India-specific portfolio in the LG playbook. Speaking to the press after the announcement, LG Electronics India’s mobile division chief Advait Vaidya noted that the proposal for adopting an India-specific portfolio had been mooted to headquarters about a year ago. “They allowed it after deliberations… So, India is the first country where LG will have its own portfolio of smartphones,” he said.
With the new launches expected to spearhead LG’s campaign for revival, the brand has set itself ambitious targets. According to Vaidya, LG’s “aim is to sell one million units of the W series by the end of the calendar year. In the next 18-24 months, assuming that 5G comes in, we are aiming for a double-digit market share in India”. The company plans to focus its attention on younger customers, with strong camera features expected to be a big draw.
“The W30 and W30 Pro... they have a triple camera setup. Our portfolio will be feature-rich at affordable prices,” said Vaidya. Experts say that the W series could help LG achieve its goals if the company gets its marketing and distribution right. “This price segment is one of the most hotly contested, with a large number of players with many viable offerings. The name of the game here is features,” said a senior analyst.
5G product pipeline
Once 5G connectivity is active in India, LG Electronics plans to introduce several 5G models from its global portfolio in the country.