New categories and new price segments have helped consumer appliances maker Panasonic enhance its presence in the ‘youth market' and the ‘mid to mass market'.
“Till about mid-2010, Panasonic was known as an expensive brand that appealed only to moms and pops but we are now changing that strategy,” said Manish Sharma, Director, Sales and Marketing, Panasonic India.
To move itself out of the niche brand category, Panasonic launched the affordable range of products that are India-specific innovations: cube ACs, LCDs and home theatres.
Currently, about 25 per cent of Panasonic India's revenues (which stood at Rs 3,200 crore) comes from the mass segment, 60 per cent from the mid segment and the rest from the niche segment.
To reach out to the youth segment, Panasonic India has launched a range of grooming products including hair dryers, shavers and trimmers. On whether Panasonic would re-enter the cell phone market, Mr Sharma said this would be a ‘global decision' and ‘we are discussing something but nothing is clear yet.'
During fiscal 2012-13, Panasonic India would continue to focus on its ‘first engine' of products comprising flat panels and ACs.
The ‘second engine' of digital cameras, washing machines and refrigerators would be moved into the ‘first engine' next year. The company's largest manufacturing unit, costing $300 million, is under construction at Jhajjar and is expected to be commissioned by December 2012. It would have facilities to manufacture about one million ACs, four lakh washing machines and 25,000 sets of welding and cutting machines per annum. It is also doubling its Noida plant capacity from one million LCDs.