By KR Nambiar
In order to create a distinct positioning for its newly launched Gateway and eMachine brands, Acer India has put in place a unique go-to-market strategy.
The PC-vendor has appointed Supertron Electronics as an exclusive distributor for the eMachine brand, while it will sell the Gateway products exclusively through Large Format Retailers (LFRs).
“We have evolved a strategy to ensure that neither channels nor consumers are confused with our multi-brand strategy. We don’t want the three brands to cannibalize each other’s market share,” explained S Rajendran, Chief Marketing Officer, Acer India.
As per the company’s multi-brand strategy, Gateway is targeted at consumers looking for style and trendy design, while eMachine is positioned as value-for-money for customers especially in the smaller cities. The parent Acer brand is targeted at tech-savvy user looking for ultra mobility and performance.
Acer is counting on Supertron’s strong relationship with component resellers and assemblers, who Rajendran believes would be eager to push a value product like eMachine.
“With the eMachine portfolio, we aim to create a special price bracket for extremely value-conscious buyers especially in the first time user (FTU) category. eMachine notebooks and desktops come with no-frills and entry-level computing performance,” added Rajendran.
Currently, Acer is selling three models under eMachine brand—an entry-level nettop priced at sub-Rs 10,000, and two models of notebooks priced 15 percent lower than the entry-level Acer models.
According to Rajendran, “In the first two months since the launch, we are averaging around 3,000 units per month, which is as per our expectations. We have virtually given a free hand to Supertron in developing the brand, and driving customer promotions and channel schemes. As a strategy, we are not advertising directly for eMachine. Most of the advertisements you see in newspapers are in classified displays,” averred Rajendran.
Meanwhile, for the Gateway brand, Acer has taken the LFR route and has partnered exclusively with Croma. “Gateway products have unique design and features which make it a LFR product and hence we have partnered exclusively with Croma. Gateway is available at 16 Croma outlets where we have in-store trained personnel educating customers about the brand. By next month, this arrangement will be expanded to all Croma outlets,” informed Rajendran.
According to Acer, there are no plans in the near future to sell the Gateway brand through IT retailers. “Our strategy is to position Gateway as a premium and aspirational brand. For the moment we will stick to LFRs and in future will set up exclusive Gateway stores in partnership with IT retailers. However, that will take time to firm up,” he concluded. |