Xiaomi adjusted the personnel structure of the International Department. As Xiaomi moves to Africa and Transsion expands to Asia, the two Chinese handset makers are likely to become archrivals on the world arena.
Xiaomi Group (1018:HK) recently adjusted the personnel structure of the International Department, established the international operator development business, and appointed general managers to oversee businesses across regions.
International business has become an important support for Xiaomi's revenue, accounting for more than 40%. The adjustment and refinement of Xiaomi's personnel structure in the international department will also help further advance its internationalization strategy.
International development is always a key strategy, among others including smartphones and AIoT, new retail and Internet, for Xiaomi. Its 2018 annual report mentions its continuous exploration of the global markets and intention of replicating the success in the Indian market to other key markets such as Indonesia and Western Europe.
As of the first quarter of 2019, Xiaomi has stepped into over 80 international markets and ranked among the top 5 in terms of shipments in 42 global markets, surpassing Samsung to be the top handset brand in India and Ukraine. It achieved total MAUs of over 260 million on MIUI, Xiaomi’s Android-based operating system for cellphones and IoT devices, and the total number of active IoT devices over 171 million.
According to Xiaomi's international business personnel adjustment, the African region is left unchanged. Xiaomi moved to Africa this January, where another Chinese smartphone company Transsion (传音) dominant the market. Different from Xiaomi’s globalization strategy, Transsion designs and sells localized handsets, with three-to-four-SIM-card capacity, specifically suits consumers in African countries.
Moving forward, Transsion is a potential competitor to Xiaomi’s overseas business. According to Transsion’s prospectus to STAR Market, it plans to expand into emerging markets such as India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia and Vietnam.