Brother Plans to Grow Its Share of Printers Sold in India

According to an article in Computer Reseller News (CRN), Brother plans to increase its share of the laser printer market in India. In the third quarter of 2014 (3Q2014), the OEM reported only a 5% share in the A4 monochrome laser, single-function and multifunction printer (MFP) markets. Now it expects to increase that slice to 10% by 2016 and 25% by 2018.

Brother is targeting its growth in market share based on a three-pronged strategy, including launching innovative products, developing the channel and increasing brand visibility.

Also, the company recently expanded its A4 printer range in the region with 10 new models aimed at SMB, SOHO and home customers. Yoshiji Matsui, Managing Director at Brother International India, asserted that in India A4 laser is taking space from the shrinking A3 market. “Our USP (unique selling proposition) is to offer enterprise features in A4 printers at prices 10-20% lower than the competition,” said Matsui.

In channels, Brother targets systems integrators (SIs) in big cities, to increase its business from government, enterprise and mid-market clients. Out of its current 600 reseller partners it has identified about 65 SIs, according to the statement. Matsui explained, while Brother has a 10-15% market share in Tier-2 and Tier-3 markets, in metros the share is much lower. “Metros contribute just 18-20 percent of our India revenue. These are the markets led by government and corporate customers, and that’s exactly where SI partners will help us,” he added.

Finally, the firm is boosting its brand through both ATL and BTL (above the line and below the line) advertising and promotion. ATL refers to mass media advertising, such as radio, television, newspapers and other mass media. BTL focuses one-on-one interaction with prospective customers, distributing literature at the point of sale, etc. It is said that the OEM has done in-shop (BTL) branding in 500 stores across 22 cities during the last fiscal year and will cover 30 cities in the current fiscal year.