EMIs, pre-used units drive Diwali smartphone sales
NEW DELHI : Refurbished smartphones and no-interest financing schemes spread over two years became the clear demand drivers for retailers in last week’s Diwali sale, which were better than industry expectations, insiders said. The two factors combined to offer a silver lining for India’s smartphone sellers, even as organic demand for smartphones continued to remain tepid at best in the second-largest smartphone market in the world.
“Even as other appliances categories remained flat, our Diwali smartphone sales saw a 40% year-on-year growth. The introduction of zero-interest, two-year financing schemes for smartphones was the biggest driver of sales, even as buyers continue to hold on to their phones for more than 20 months," Nilesh Gupta, MD of electronics retailer Vijay Sales, said.
Kailash Lakhyani, president of industry body All India Mobile Retailers’ Association (Aimra), said the zero-interest, two-year instalment plan was a driver of sales for small physical retailers, too. In response to a query from Mint, Ranjit Babu, director—smartphones and televisions at Amazon India, said the platform saw 2.5x higher smartphone sales across the festive season, driven largely by “no-cost financing and exchange offers." Flipkart declined to comment on its Diwali smartphone sales.
For brands, a Xiaomi spokesperson said the company now expects the second half of the year to be ‘significantly stronger’ than H1. Manish Khatri, partner at retailer Mahesh Telecom, said market stagnation among customers is a driving factor behind this.
“Customers today regularly tell us that there’s no compelling reason for them to buy new phones, and the quality of existing phones have also become very good. Hence, new purchases are no longer being
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