Fast-growing Chinese handset maker Xiaomi is coming to Africa, according to a report on the Forbes website. The company, which is now one of the largest smartphone makers worldwide, has appointed Mobile in Africa to represent it 50 African countries.
Mobile in Africa is headed by RJ van Spaandonk, “most recently” an executive director at Core Group, Forbes said. Through Core Group, Van Spaandonk played a big role in expanding Apple’s presence in Southern Africa, along with other consumer electronics brands.
Van Spaandonk is travelling abroad and couldn’t immediately be reached on his mobile phone for comment.
Founded in 2010 and headed by Lei Jun, Xiaomi is targeting international expansion in emerging markets after entering the vast Indian market in July last year. Countries it’s eyeing include Indonesia, the Philippines and Brazil.
According to Forbes, Mobile in Africa is setting up online stores in 14 African countries and, similar to Xiaomi’s model in China, will sell its smartphones mostly online.
Recent analyst reports have said that Xiaomi is now the world’s third largest smartphone maker by shipments behind Korea’s Samsung and America’s Apple. The company is known for making high-quality smartphones, which has earned it the label “the Apple of China”.
Two Xiaomi handsets will be available at launch, Forbes said. They are the Red Mi 2 (R1 999 in South Africa) and the Mi 4 (R3 999), which is pictured at top. — (c) 2015 NewsCentral Media
