Japanese consumer electronics brand AIWA, which re-entered the Indian market as AIWA India, believes that the country is a large market and is expecting sales of around Rs 100 crore this calendar year, a top executive said in September.

With its re-entry in April, the company had introduced five new products in the audio range between Rs 699 and Rs 7,999. “India is one of the fastest-growing consumer electronics markets on the global roadmap and research reports show that there is a great inclination from Indians towards personal audio products,” Mr Ajay Mehta, MD, AIWA India, told IANS. “Presently, we are in a setup mode and we are expecting sales of around Rs 100 crore this calendar year,” Mr Mehta added.

The MD said that the company is planning to launch a premium home audio range and other products such as air purifiers, TV in India soon. “AIWA products will have a Japanese legacy of product design and quality, designed and manufactured by product experts from AIWA Japan,” Mr Mehta asserted. “Our aim at AIWA is to provide Indian consumers with a wide choice of products with innovative, advanced features that meet all requirements across different demographics and price brackets,” he added.

Mr Mehta said that the products will be launched at a competitive price as per industry standards. He also emphasised that the majority of Indian consumers still prefer to buy offline as they believe in the touch and feel factor. “India is a large market and to reach our customers across the country, we will spread our retail footprints with an offline network of 1,000 stores across India including Reliance Digital and Jio stores,” Mr Mehta said.

However, to maintain an optimum balance between both online and offline channels, the company will also make the products available online through e-commerce major Amazon. When asked about its manufacturing plans in India, Mr Mehta said that TVs, refrigerators and air conditioners could be contract manufactured in India as part of the first phase. On the design front, Japan, Taiwan and China dominate in electronics design and research and development (R&D) globally.

“AIWA India will continue to rely on Japanese capabilities for design and R&D. In terms of the competition strategy, the company will continue to offer value-for-money and high-technology audio and consumer electronic products,” Mr Mehta said.