Samsung looks to be on track to regain its top spot in the Indian smartphone market, after a strong performance in March. The South Korean electronics maker, which once replaced Nokia atop the smartphone market in India, has ceded that spot to China’s Xiaomi since the third quarter of 2020.
The company showed strong performance this March following strong performance of its Galaxy S22 and A-Series range of smartphones, according to analysts. Samsung topped the month both in terms of overall market share and in the premium segment, which comprises phones priced above ₹30,000.
Xiaomi, however, retained its market leadership during the March quarter.
Samsung is on track to surpass its closest rival Xiaomi in the overall market and will surpass Apple in the premium market as well, the analysts said. The company achieved 81% market share in phones costing more than ₹1 lakh in March, which consists largely of phones from Samsung and Apple, according to data from Counterpoint Research.
It also clocked 38% market share in the more than ₹30,000 segment, which consists of premium phones from Apple, Xiaomi, Vivo, and others. Apple, on the other hand, had 30% market share in this segment, according to the data.
There is a “strong possibility” that Samsung may return to the number one position in the second quarter as its new devices in the Galaxy A series are doing well, said Prachir Singh, senior research analyst at Counterpoint Research. The brand has had new launches that have been favoured by the market, Singh said.
Further, growing traction in offline retail in line with the easing of coronavirus-induced restrictions has also helped Samsung regain its market presence. The company has been able to cover most price segments with its new launches, which has given it “market momentum”, said Prabhu Ram, head, industry intelligence group at Cybermedia Research.
Aditya Babbar, senior director and head of Product Marketing, Mobile Business at Samsung India, too, attributed the momentum to the expansion in offline retail. “We increased our flagship retail footprint to enable consumers to experience our devices not only in metro cities but also in tier-1 and smaller towns,” he said.
Samsung dominated the 5G value for money price band of ₹7,000 to ₹25,000 as well, in the March quarter, according to Cybermedia Research.
The company ended the first quarter of 2022 with a 20% market share, behind Xiaomi’s 23%, according to Counterpoint.
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