July 23, 2018
The second headquarters will help the company concentrate on developing markets outside China; OnePlus had entered India in 2014 and has been manufacturing in the country since 2015
OnePlus’ competitively-priced premium phones have given stiff competition to rivals in the Indian market; It is doubling its service centres to 25 and setting up five experience zones
India now ranks second, globally, in the manufacture of mobile phones, with the number of mobile phone manufacturing factories rising from just 2, to 120, in about four years’ time
Government of India has launched a phased manufacturing programme aimed at adding more smartphone components under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, aiding domestic manufacturing
OnePlus is preparing to launch its second global headquarters in India, a nation that has emerged as a fast growing market for the Chinese smartphone manufacturer, according to media reports on July 23 citing a company statement. The second headquarters will help the company concentrate on developing markets outside China. The company is also looking to set up a research and development (R&D) centre in India this year that will not just internalise solutions for local operation but support export from the country as well. The R&D centre will employ around 50 people. The Shenzhen, China based company had entered India in 2014 and has been manufacturing in the country since 2015. Currently, OnePlus is the process of doubling its service centres to 25, while setting up five experience zones across India.
The company’s competitively-priced premium phones have given stiff competition to rivals in the Indian smartphone market – one of the largest and fastest growing in the world. India accounts for around 33 per cent of OnePlus’ total sales, with the rest coming from around 33 countries. The company hopes that an improved outreach will unlock new business opportunities in the 1.3 billion-strong market. Currently, Chinese smartphone brands such as OnePlus, Vivo, Oppo control the majority of the Indian consumer base and have sought to secure their local presence with increased investment. Meanwhile, Government of India has launched a phased manufacturing programme (PMP) aimed at adding more smartphone components under the ‘Make in India’ initiative thereby giving a push to the domestic manufacturing.
OnePlus’ announcement comes weeks after Samsung Electronics opened the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturing plant near Delhi following an investment of US$710 million. The new plant will serve the dual purpose of ‘Make in India’ as well as ‘Make for the World’, thus contributing to the Indian Government’s aim to set up a world-class manufacturing base for local market as well as export. With the new facility, Samsung will double its current production capacity for mobile phones in Noida from 68 million units a year to 120 million units a year by 2020. India now ranks second, globally, in the manufacture of mobile phones, with the number of mobile phone manufacturing factories rising from just 2, to 120, in about four years’ time. This has created lakhs of new investment and employment opportunities.