Micromax aims to be among world's top 5 smartphone makers

Domestic handset maker Micromax is expanding its international business, foraying into markets like Middle East, Africa and CIS countries, as it aims to be among the top five global players in the next 3-4 years.

Micromax, which ranked tenth at the end of June 2015 quarter as per research firm Gartner, said it has a strong presence in markets like Russia, Bangladesh and Nepal.

"We started our international business a few years back with markets like Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. We have since then grown our presence to other markets as well. We have a five per cent share in Russia," Micromax Senior Vice-President (International Business) Amit Mathur told PTI.

He added that about 15-20 per cent of overall volume comes from international business.

"The ambition is to be a part of the top five (global players) in the next 3-4 years. We are exploring Middle East and a cluster of countries in Africa that will allow us to quickly expand. We will enter these markets in the coming fiscal," he said.

Mathur added that the company will enter markets like Armenia, Kazakhstan and Georgia in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region.

According to Gartner, Micromax ranked at the tenth spot in June quarter of 2015 with a global market share of 2.2 per cent. However, it slipped off the top ten tally in the September quarter. The research firm is yet to declare the numbers for the December quarter.

During the July-September 2015 quarter, the worldwide mobile phone sales to end users totaled nearly 478 million units, up 3.7 per cent from the same period in 2014. Samsung, Apple, Microsoft, Huawei and LG were the leading players in the tally.

In India, Micromax is the second largest player after Samsung.

Talking about the product portfolio in the international markets, Mathur said each country has its unique set of requirements.

"While 60 per cent of the products are similar to what we sell in India, about 40 per cent of these are specific to the requirements in those markets," he added.

Mathur said the international business has been profitable for the past three years and is close to hitting revenues of Rs 1,000 crore by March, growing 100 per cent from 2014-15.

Overall, the Gurgaon-based company had clocked about Rs 11,000 crore in revenue last year. It declined to give estimates for the ongoing fiscal.

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