India is one of the biggest and fastest growing smartphone markets globally. The rapid proliferation of smartphones and mobile-enabled devices is a major factor in augmenting the demand for mobile accessories in India.
Today, smartphones have become inseparable companions to most people and this trend is driving the mobile phone accessories segment as never before. Growing at 17% YoY, the Indian smartphone sector continues to drive the mobile accessories market at a comparable pace, offering a great opportunity for the accessory providers to boom and flourish. The trend is expected to continue for several more years to come.
Technically, the term ‘mobile accessories’ includes a wide range of items including fancy mobile covers, stands, safeguards, decorative pieces, earphones, headsets, dongles, chargers, memory cards, batteries, powerbanks, Bluetooth speakers, and other portable accessories. The increasing adoption of smartphones, Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and unprecedented usage of the Internet have given a significant impetus to the mobile accessories market in India during the last few years. The technological advancements made in the field of mobile accessories, dropping prices due to competition, etc are making the Indian mobile accessories industry a happening place.
Factors Driving the Indian Mobile Accessories Market
At present, India has lakhs of multi-brand stores and hundreds of online retailers for mobile phones and accessories. Availability of a strong distribution network and zeal to gain the competitive advantage are the essential driving factors for the providers of the mobile accessories to climb up the ladder. The slashing of the average selling prices of accessories has made the products affordable for consumers from all the economic strata, which has enabled the market to expand enormously.
The pullback factors like lack of standardization, threat to privacy, counterfeit production of branded accessories and the compulsion to adhere to competitive pricing, unfavorable government policies that tax essential imports and lack of ecosystem to Make in India remain potent risks often setting limits to the providers of the Indian mobile accessories. Despite the roadblocks, the Indian mobile accessories market is doing well in terms of opportunities for accessories providers.
Gigantic Size of the Indian Mobile Accessories Market
India is one of the biggest and fastest growing smartphone markets globally. The rapid proliferation of smartphones and mobile-enabled devices is a major factor in augmenting the demand for mobile accessories in India.
“As we know, India is one of the biggest markets for smartphones and is growing at a tremendous rate. Correspondingly, the mobile accessories market is also growing at a faster rate. The mass brand like Zebronics with a wide range of accessory products and a wide reach across the nation sees a lot of opportunities in the mobile accessories market in the current year and coming years.” Rajesh Doshi, Zebronics.
Mandeep Arora, Director UBON, comments, “Today, people prefer to try and physically feel the product prior to making a buying decision. UBON accessories with eye-catchy and premium looks can be found at most of the shops & showrooms in the country, in addition to online market places.”
Arun Singh, Director, Zealot, asserts, “Today nearly 70% of the 1.36 billion populations in India use mobile phones and correspondingly the market for mobile accessories is vast and is growing fast. That is the reason all the major brands are focusing on the Indian market.”
Komal Agarwal, Director (Marketing), Pebble, reveals, “The Mobile Accessories Market in India is expected to be around Rs 15,000 Cr in the current year. We are very optimistic about the growth of Pebble and the market share we could cut.”
Deepali Jain, Co-Founder & Director – Marketing, Sound One Technologies, comments, “Because of the increasing number of smartphone users, the market of mobile accessories in India has been growing exponentially. Sound One has an exclusive range of mobile accessories within affordable price range to meet the needs of different strata of users.”
Puneet Gupta, Business Head, Oraimo Accessories India, shares, “Today, basic accessories have become must-own devices and the mobile accessories market is growing at a remarkable rate. Though the market is still largely fragmented and unorganized with grey, unbranded sellers having a big share, the Indian Mobile accessories market will continue to offer opportunities for branded players to survive and grow.”
Pawan Parwani of Landmark, says, “The increasing penetration and upward moving graph of the smartphone industry have simultaneously given the mobile accessories market an equal opportunity to boom and flourish. The rise in the use of mobile Internet and innovative technologies are further driving the growth of the accessories market.”
Harsh Kukadia, CEO, HK Concepts, shares, “Indian mobile accessories market is growing at a CAGR of 17% as opposed to the analysts’ expectations of 10.5%. So we at HK Concepts see a lot of scope for those who know how to explore and exploit the opportunities.”
Nishant Goel, Co-Founder & Director, Gizmore, says, “Indian mobile phone accessories market is anticipated to flourish at a CAGR of 10.5% during 2016-2024. Factors such as rising share of youth population and increasing penetration of smartphones among masses are anticipated to fuel the growth of the India mobile phone accessories market.”
D K Bharti, Country Head – India, e-Ping (a brand of Ping Telematics Pvt Ltd), states, “The growing penetration of the smartphones is simultaneously driving the mobile market accessories market. Growing urbanization, rising disposable incomes, active youth population and competitive prices are further accelerating the accessories market.”
In the words of Akhilesh Chopra, Marketing Manager, Bluei, “The ongoing deeper penetration of the smartphones has given the mobile market accessories an opportunity to boom and flourish. Quality, style, attractive looks and comfort levels of the accessories have become the other factors driving the demand.”
Rajneesh Wadhawan of Glorious electronics (I) Pvt Ltd, says, “The increase of mobile phone adoption are key factor driving the growth of mobile phone accessories market size. The factors responsible for the growth can also attributed to the rapid expansion of accessory distribution network, both online and offline. Now most of Indians find it difficult to conduct without mobile phones and mobile accessories.”
Sudhir Kumar of AMYO states, “The Indian mobile industry has grown manifold in the last few years and the increasing number of customers who own mobile phones need supporting accessories like chargers, phone covers, power banks, earphones, etc. The mobile accessories market has therefore seen a rapid rise in the demand for such accessories since 2015 and is forecasted to grow at a CAGR of over 10% till 2023.”
Mandeep Arora of UBON, comments, “UBON was launched with the aim to increase the reach of the branded quality gadgets and mobile accessories to the consumers of every sector, vertical, and society. With the strong R&D and right technology, UBON offers a wide range of Bluetooth speakers & headphones, chargers, cables, car accessories, care products and surge protectors–more than 125 accessories.”
Ashok Rajpal, Director of Ambrane expresses, “Indian mobile phone accessories market is anticipated to flourish at a CAGR of 10.5% over the forecast period i.e. 2019-2024. Further, factors such as, rising young age population, mobile Internet usage, increasing penetration in T2 and T3 cities are anticipated to drive the growth of the Indian mobile phone accessories market over the forecast period.”
“Today most people in India are using mobile phones and the number is growing, so the demand for accessories is currently huge and will grow further,” states, Manoj Seal, Director, Strategic Alliances, eGifts4all.
Pranjit Hazarika, Director, Punta India Pvt Ltd, comments, “The Mobile accessories market in India is significantly growing in tandem with the growth in smartphone user-base which is pegged to be currently at around 30% today and the pie is only growing every year. All data point pertaining to subscriber base, growth YOY, smart phone consumer base growth etc only indicate towards a bright future for this industry. The fact that the market is growing at a CAGR of 10% will only bring smiles for the existing as well as for the brands waiting at the gate.”
Major Factors Affecting Demand
The mobile phone accessories segment is fast changing with the continuous technology upgrades and the manufacturers bringing out devices that offer several functionalities to attract customers. The consumers are looking out for devices that are unique, versatile and multi-functional.
Rajesh Doshi from Zebronics states, “The consumers today are on the lookout for unique and distinct looking accessories that become a part of their identity, besides being multi-functional and trendy. Zeb-Journey wireless earphones come with 13 hours of playback time and a voice assistant feature for Google/Siri devices.”
Komal Agarwal of Pebble asserts, “The consumption of media on smartphones has increased significantly, so there is a growing demand for high power banks, audio products such as earphones, headphones and speakers to enjoy the media content better.”
Arun Singh of Zealot comments, “People are buying from China and selling by putting their brand name on it without any attention to quality. Good quality at reasonable price is the need of the hour. The grey market should be curbed to streamline accessories business.”
Puneet Gupta of Oraimo Accessories India reveals, “The increasing penetration of smartphones is proportionately pushing up the demand for accessories, creating a secondary market. Be it earphones, speakers, power-banks, wearables or headsets, today, accessories are complementing the smartphones while making them smarter. Nowadays, changing preferences like listening to music on portable devices, charging on the go, etc has also created a burgeoning demand for mobile accessories.”
Harsh Kukadia of HK Concepts says, “There are two major factors that have resulted in the increased demand of mobile phone accessories—Data: India is one of the largest consumers of mobile data. Recent studies have shown an increasing demand for VoD contents, which in turn is leading to an increasing demand for power banks and earphones; and then Gaming: Battery-hungry games like PUBG and Fortnite have also led to an increasing demand for mobile accessories.”
Nishant Goel of Gizmore shares, “Major factors driving the growth of smart accessories are: rapid urbanization, improving network connectivity, technological advancements and changing distribution networks and trends. People are looking for mobile accessories which are colorful, unique, stylish and trendy.”
D K Bharti of e-Ping says, “Today, short product life-cycles, fast changing technology, increasing competition and price-sensitivity, all have a lot of influence on the demand of accessories like chargers, cables, hands free, power bank, etc.”
Sandeep Popli of Damson Technologies reveals, “While the users want to own the most advanced handsets, they do not mind going an extra mile to keep their mobile phones safe and trendy supplemented by the latest accessories.According to the industry reports, products such as protective cases for mobile phones and audio gears such as headphones and earphones are expected to hold ranks as the top selling mobile phone accessories in India.”
Akhilesh Chopra of Bluei elaborates, “Mobile accessories like headphones, power banks, travel chargers, USB cables, wireless speakers, Bluetooth devices, selfie-sticks enhance the value of smartphones. Bluei is providing a wide range of accessories to the consumers in an affordable range. Everyone today wants style statements and Blue-i stores provide a wide range of accessories which are colorful, unique and trendy to satisfy these needs.”
Rajneesh Wadhawan of Glorious Electronics briefs, “Fast chargers and wireless chargers are the latest trend. Power banks offerings are shifting from heavy and bulky lithium-ion batteries to lightweight, sleek and stylish polymer models. Increasing demand for Bluetooth earphones and headphones are the other latest trends in mobile accessories market segment.”
Sudhir Kumar of AMYO asserts, “With the country moving towards more and more digitization, there is a rapid rise in the ownership of personal gadgets like smartphones, tablets, laptops, e-readers, etc. Correspondingly, the demand for different kinds of accessories like USB cables, Aux Wires, earphones, adapters, etc is also increasing exponentially.”
Ashok Rajpal of Ambrane adds, “Among many factors that drive the mobile accessories demand, there are a few critical factors including: Innovation, Quality, Price and Product / Technology Awareness. Constant improvisation on these factors will enable companies to compete in a healthy manner.”
Pranjit Hazarika of shares, “Rapid digitization that India is witnessing today, urbanization, online marketplace expansion, growth of middle class as a community , affordability due to price depreciation in mobile accessories etc are impact factors that are defining the demand trend of phone accessories in India.”
Latest Technology & Market Trends
Today the wireless gadgets with longer battery life options, voice assistance, fast chargers and sporty and colorful accessories are trending today.
Rajesh Doshi of Zebronics avers, “The latest trend is growing demand for the wireless gadgets, long-life batteries, high power banks, fast chargers, etc. Our recent 10,000 mAh power bank ZEB-MC10000PD comes with a triple USB 2.1 A output for people who are on the move. We also have a range of fast charging wireless phone chargers. Our Zeb-Peace earphones come with voice assistance and give a true wireless earphone experience.”
Komal Agarwal of Pebble states, “With respect to charging solutions, fast charging technologies like QC, PD and wireless charging solutions are the latest trends. With respect to Bluetooth speakers, the market is trending towards smaller-sized speakers with higher outputs. Sporty and light earphones/ headphones are also trending higher.”
Ravi Kumar Daryani, Director, Zavia, shares, “One of the latest trends is people want quality Bluetooth speakers. Our aim at Zavia is to provide the most economical Bluetooth speakers that can give superior experience at a price point, compared to other similar products available in the market, along with warranty to both the consumers and the OEMs. Great quality, aesthetic looks, durability, competitive price, good features & functionality are the hallmarks of the Zavia’s Bluetooth speakers.”
Arun Singh of Zealot comments, “Wireless charging, Bluetooth earplug / headphone and high sound, attractively designed speakers are on demand.
”Deepali Jain of Sound One Technologies states, “The latest trends in the Indian mobile market are wireless headphones, airpods, wireless chargers, wireless power banks, etc. Sound One is a one-stop-destination for these technologies with a wide range of products at affordable prices.”
In the words of Puneet Gupta of Oraimo Accessories, “Besides comfort and ease-of-use, the accessories today are also considered style-statements and the brands are focusing on making accessories trendy and attractive with a variety of colors and design variants, bundling them with smart-phones with attractive options for both sellers and buyers. Wireless devices are adding convenience to masses enhancing the experience in using the phones. As a brand, we constantly adopt the new marketing technologies to keep up with consumer expectations and demands in the market.”
Harsh Kukadia of HK Concepts briefs, “Bluetooth TWS earphone is gaining popularity among the Indian consumers mainly for its compact size and usefulness. Small, compact power banks made of Li-Polymer cells is also gaining traction due to the reduction in their prices.
”In the words of Manish Gupta of Gizmore, “With the technological advancements, users in India are getting more inclined towards the high tech mobile accessories like Bluetooth devices, high power banks, wireless headphones, etc and they want advanced, safe and secure accessories for their mobile phones. Customers today want to listen to music on-the-go thus increasing the demand for portable accessories.”
D K Bharti of e-Ping elaborates, “Today, the trend is moving towards Bluetooth and wireless products like wireless chargers, wireless portable chargers, Bluetooth hands free, headphones, speakers etc. In the coming years, wireless headphones and earphones are expected to gain popularity. Turbo chargers capable of charging mobile devices at faster speeds are witnessing rapid adoption among consumers in India.”
Sandeep Popli of Damson Technologies reveals, “Some of the latest trends in technology & market trends are: fast charging, wireless charging, portable power, wireless headphones and ear buds, and wearables & VR headsets. Fitness trackers & smart-watches will also be the next big sources of growth. We at Corseca invest continuously in the R&D to improve wireless connectivity distances, craft more ergonomic and specialized designs for various types of users.”
Akhilesh Chopra of Bluei speaks, “The latest wireless gadgets are: wireless power banks; wireless chargers and wireless earplugs. Nowadays, the Indian consumers are increasingly using wireless power banks and wireless chargers to charge their portable devices. Next, the Bluetooth devices help to get rid of bulky gadgets, easy to handle, stylish and trendy, and hence are growing in demand.”
Mandeep Arora of UBON asserts, “We at Ubon are aiming big with AI & machine Learning. We are planning to enhance our portfolio in the speaker & headphone category by developing voice & Internet-enabled speakers and headphones. People no longer want to indulge in wires; instead, they prefer wireless products for the day-to-day needs.”
Sudhir Kumar of AMYO comments, “With rapidly changing technology, the product life cycles have become short and the accessories providers must keep up-to-date with not just the technology ut also with the beautification that attracts customers. AI-powered connecting devices in the consumer electronics are expected to pick pace in the upcoming years. We at AMYO aim to provide all the accessories that are required by the consumers to complete their mobility experience twith advanced technology at affordable prices.”
Ashok Rajpal of Ambrane briefs, “Wireless ear buds, wireless charging power banks, fast charging output mobile chargers etc are gaining in demand. In the smart wearables, features like support calling, messaging, real-time notifications from apps, heart-rate trackers, BP indicators and waterproof are becoming common.”
Manoj Seal of eGifts4all concluded, “Overall market is moving towards trendy accessories and young customers are looking for innovative products, including multicolor products. One important point is innovative and attractive packaging also impresses the customers.”
Commenting on the latest technologies, Pranjit Hazarika of Punta elaborates, “There has surely been a significant rise in the mid- and low-priced segment of mobile accessories leading to affordability and mass penetration. People are becoming more trendy and there are choices aplenty with respect to features and specs, upgrades and costs are going down and increase in mobile internet user base has is steering the accessories trend in the market. Companies are investing more on technology… the future holds bright for products with AI and wired are going to get replaced with wireless, comfort in usage and benefits will play a crucial role where technology will chip in. More products will get launched to attempt to create a niche in crowded sub categories.”
Brand’s View About Price
Rajesh Doshi of Zebronics specifies, “India is still a price-sensitive market but the scenario is changing. Earlier it was all about the price but now people are clearly looking for products that are fast, functional and have multiple options.”
Komal Agarwal of comments, “The consumers have started to realize the benefits of purchasing a long-lasting product instead of getting into the hassles of purchasing a cheaper, low-quality, short-life products multiple times. This is why Pebble has been able to grow significantly and maintain its brand reputation.”
Arun Singh of Zealot briefs, “Price-sensitivity is still an issue. People often compare offline prices and features with prices and features of products on online portals.”
Deepali Jain of Sound One Technologies expresses, “I feel that India is fairly price-sensitive as compared to the global markets. But now Indians have started to choose quality products though they cost a little more, rather than buying cheap products which will be junked after a few months.”
Pawan Parwani of Landmark opines, “The price-sensitiveness trend will certainly change and the demand will shift towards higher quality products. We are focusing on investing in innovative and versatile yet cost-effective products to help change the mindset of our clients and drive value for money.”
Manish Gupta of Gizmore comments, “India is a price-sensitive market but trends are changing. Urbanization and increasing disposable incomes of the population are expected to drive the spending on accessories in the coming years.”
Sandeep Popli of Damson Technologies asserts, “The trend is already changing and the new consumers even in T2 and T3 cities do not mind spending ‘a little extra’ if the accessory serves their desire of trend, style, comfort and use.”
Akhilesh Chopra of Bluei comments, “The price-sensitiveness trend is changing as the buyers are now moving towards quality accessories. We at Bluei largely focus on providing secured technology and enhanced customer service.”
Puneet Gupta of Oraimo Accessories shares, “Price-sensitiveness will continue to prevail in the country. But, the demand coming from rural and T2 & T3 towns has been indicative that consumers are looking for better functionality and experience than just low-price.”
Rajneesh Wadhawan of Glorious Electronics states, “India has been a price-sensitive market, but now, this trend is changing as standard Indian brands are offering quality products at affordable prices with warranty. The Indian government’s efforts to make BIS certification mandatory have reduced the grey market to a great extent.”
Mandeep Arora of UBON opines, “Although the Indian consumers are price-sensitive, if we offer value-for-money products, people tend to spend without showing too much concern for the price. UBON aims to deliver the latest technology, stylish, long-lasting accessories at affordable prices.”
Sudhir Kumar AMYO adds, “India is a very price-sensitive market. However, since the overall market will grow 3-fold by the end of 2024, so there is still a lot of scope for the standard brands to tap.”
Ashok Rajpal of Ambrane concluded, “India is a price-sensitive market, but there is always room for those who provide quality, reliability and top class features.”
Pranjit Hazarika of Punta opines, “Though price-points will carry an impetus in consumer buying choice, consumers choice will always revolve on value for money vis-a-vis value for quality and style. For the latter price points might not be the defining factor. While there will be an emergence of the first time buyers, parallel to that the replacement and upgrade market will also grow at the same time leading to a cumulative growth trend for the industry.”
Challenges Ahead
There are a lot of unbranded products in the unorganized market which attract customers with low-cost but in the long-run these products are not reliable and do not provide good user experience, but their low prices are very tempting to the consumers though they cost a lot in the long-run. This has become a big challenge to the branded players providing quality at a price.
Rajesh Doshi from Zebronics states, “The biggest challenge the mobile accessories providers facing is there are a lot of unbranded goods which serve well for short-term. As a brand of masses, Zebronics always aims to give the value-for-money products with best quality and aesthetical appearance with warranty and service support.”
Talking about the opportunities for mobile accessories providers in the Indian market, Ravi Kumar Daryani of Zavia, reveals, “Today, once products are ready, they should be sold immediately; otherwise price-fluctuations and obsoleteness can cost the providers a lot. Next, providers should incorporate multiple functions into a single device, as people want several features like mobile stand, wireless chargers, etc in a single device.”
Komal Agarwal from Pebble says, “The increasing clutter of regional brands and unbranded products in the market is affecting margins due to extensive price wars. Secondly, it is also confusing the consumers on what is the right product to buy when they see a ‘similar looking’ product varying in prices from Rs. 200 to 2000.”
Puneet Gupta of Oraimo Accessories shares, “We feel that the biggest challenge the market facing today is the entry of low-quality products. These low-quality, cheap imported products (often fakes) are disturbing the healthy growth of the industry, often misleading the consumers. With low R&D, no warranty or service support, these grey market accessories are creating unhealthy competition.”
Pawan Parwani of Landmark briefs, “Currently the biggest challenge is the rapid innovation seen in the market that makes the life of any product limited.”
Harsh Kukadia of HK Concepts expresses, “Today, neither the channel nor the consumers are loyal to a particular brand. As a result, most of the brands are having a hard time staying afloat in the market. Moreover, the recent inflow of cheap Chinese products has led to a decreasing demand for expensive branded products as the price difference between the two is significantly high.”
Nishant Goel of clarifies, “We are very positive that with the fast-changing Indian import regulations, only quality & established suppliers would survive in the long-run and grey market will shrink rapidly.”
D K Bharti of e-Ping clarifies, “The Indian accessories market is able to offer a lot of opportunities despite the challenges Technologies that sync with the newest smartphones, value-added features such as the selfie click button, LED lights, torch, in-built cables with fast charge option to multiple devices, high power banks, etc are in demand. Next, wireless technology is the future. The latest wearables are coming with AI and IoT features that keep track of information and instructions.”
Sandeep Popli of Damson Technologies says, “The issues of threat to privacy, lack of standardization, counterfeit production of branded accessories and the compulsion to adhere to the competitive pricing in order to safeguard market share continue to be the challenges in the mobile accessories market.”
Akhilesh Chopra of Bluei comments, “In my opinion, the main challenge is from the cheap quality products, dupes and imitations which are confusing the buyers. My message to customers is that they should buy accessories only from proven brands and avoid buying imitations.”
Rajneesh Wadhawan of Glorious Electronics adds, “The biggest challenge of mobile accessories market is that the market is crowded and flooded with unorganized players selling low-price, inferior quality products. But slowly the consumers are shifting towards the branded products having warranty and after-sales-service.”
Mandeep Arora, UBON, opines, “In my opinion, grey market, rapid innovations, and obsolescence of technology are the great challenges. To face this, providers need to be always innovative, creative & distinctive in product designs as well as marketing strategies. UBON incorporates the latest technologies and updates product lines on regular basis.”
Sudhir Kumar of AMYO briefs, “The main challenge remains how to keep up-to-date with the latest and changing technologies and be able to provide it at budget costs. We at AMYO provide technologically superior products while meeting the changing requirements of the customers.”
Pranjit Hazarika of Punta reveals, “The industry need to be more standardized in nature, the invasion of cheap price point products with quality issue might deter local manufacturers to get a foothold.”
Untapped Opportunities
Rajesh Doshi of Zebronics comments, “The Indian market offers continuous opportunities for those who offer quality and latest technologies, despite challenges. Zebronics delivers products that are based on EQR (Excellence, Quality and Reliability) principle are available at an affordable range.”
Komal Agarwal of Pebble briefs, “The 70% unbranded and cluttered, unorganized mobile accessories market is the biggest opportunity to penetrate and cut into their share for the brands trying to establish themselves.”
Arun Singh of Zealot expresses, “According to me, the huge population in India offers a great opportunity, not only for mobile phones but also for accessories providers.”
Deepali Jain of Sound One Technologies opines, “The Chinese products with low quality and low prices have invaded the market rapidly until people started to realize the quality factor. Now the quality is the concern for users and Sound One is a brand that focuses on the quality of the products.”
Puneet Gupta of Oraimo Accessories comments, “The accessory market is booming significantly and will continue to do so. While most of these users are from the metros and T2 cities, we see a huge potential in T3 & T4 cities too. The T3 & T4 cities will witness increased demand for mobile accessories in the coming years.”
Harsh Kukadia of HK Concepts says, “We, as manufacturers, see a great potential in the OEM/ODM market. Demand for made-in-India products has increased a lot. Being a renowned manufacturer of Make in India mobile accessories, we see a lot of opportunity in this segment.”
Manish Gupta of Gizmore states, “Growing smartphone penetration is set to further push up the accessories market in India. In 2014, the percentage of smartphone users in India was mere 21.4%, which rose to 29.8% in 2016 and is expected to rise to 39% by 2019.”
D K Bharti of e-Ping opines, “Growing urbanization, rising disposable incomes, active youth population and competitive prices will further accelerate the demand for quality accessories.”
Sandeep Popli of Damson Technologies, opines, “The latest technology, trendy features, comfort, right price, etc all play their part while addressing a segment of consumers, be it Bluetooth speakers, fitness wearable gadgets or headphones.”
Akhilesh Chopra of Bluei, asserts, “Inclination towards comfort and ease is drawing demand for wireless smartphone accessories as never before. Future wireless technologies are expected to increase the efficiency and convenience further and wireless accessories shall define the future.”
Mandeep Arora of UBON comments, “In my opinion, Indian market is so huge that there are a lot of untapped opportunities. We are presently expanding our Indian consumer base and enhancing the consumer experience of our products.”
Sudhir Kumar of AMYO states, “With deeply penetrated distribution network, AMYO has been successful in establishing its presence at most multi-store outlets. AMYO aims to make the experience of mobility complete by offering easily accessible, affordable mobile phone accessories and ensure availability in maximum multi-retail stores across the offline market.”
Kapil Wadhwa, Director, Champion Mobiles, comments, “India today is the 2nd largest smartphone market in the world and it is expected to grow further as still many million people are yet to switch to smartphones. This opens a huge and growing market for mobile accessories. Quality is our main merit and we are getting very good response from the market for our products. In future, only those who provide quality products and top class service will survive in the mobile accessories market.”
Ashok Rajpal of Ambrane states, “Today, technological advancements are welcomed by Indian consumers, triggering the opportunity for the mobile phone accessories providers.”
“The size of the mobile accessories is going to increase by 3-fold in the next 5 years. BT hands free, BT speakers, Fast chargers and Data cables are going to witness a huge growth. Value-for-money will always lead the market,” concluded, Manoj Seal of eGifts4all.
Pranjit Hazarika of Punta adds, “Oh plenty, the industry will see host of technological changes, wireless, artificial intelligence, capacity enhancement, upgrades will makes eyes roll rapidly and the only people to reap the dividend will be the consumers. Youth as a community will trigger the demand generation and will foster rapid growth.”
Big Opportunity for Committed Brands
There is a vast unfilled vacuum in the Indian mobile accessories market and also there is a lot to understand real requirements of the Indian audience for accessories.
Rajesh Doshi of Zebronics comments, “We are focusing on tapping the unfilled market with our versatile and vast range of accessory products ranging from extensive charging cables, mobile chargers, car chargers, power banks, wireless portable speakers, unique headphones to earphones, with high standards and quality.”
Komal Agarwal of Pebble shares, “There are only a few standard mobile accessory brands in the market. We at pebble plan to capitalize on our brand equity gained till date and focus more on brand-building based on quality, reliability, and affordability to increase our market share in the coming years and be a long-term player in this industry.”
Arun Singh of Zealot declares, “I believe, the Indian customers are always open to see new technologies and add-ons, so they always give chance to new brands as long as these brands come up with unique features and concepts. Brands must spend more on incentives to the channel and quality & functionalities to customers, instead of spending money on brand ambassadors.”
Deepali Jain of Sound One Technologies comments, “Brands can be successful only if they come up with new and interesting deliverables. Sound one has an amazing set of products starting from 3-in-1 braided cable, headphones with FM to SD slot.”
Puneet Gupta of Oraimo Accessories comments, “We see a huge, untapped demand in T2 &T3 cities markets. With a mission to enable the T2 &T3 cities customers to join the race of digitalization, we identify and develop products that suit their aspirations and give them a better lifestyle.”
Pawan Parwani of Landmark briefs, “Consistent innovation and learning from the rapidly developing industry are two things that help us keep our products relevant in the market.”
Harsh Kukadia of HK Concepts says, “Brands must provide high quality products at a pocket-friendly price. We at HK Concepts aim to provide high quality products at a good price.”
Nishant Goel of Gizmore shares, “Despite the fact that the demand for wireless technology is presently concentrated in select population segments and regions, Gizmore believes that wireless technologies will become common in future.”
D K Bharti of e-Ping comments, “Though there is a big grey market in India, we see a lot of scope for new and white brands. e-Ping offers all the products with the latest technology and great quality. We provide top class accessories at much lesser prices.”
Sandeep Popli of Damson Technologies opines, “Yes, there is an unfilled vacuum in this market. At Corseca, we plan to bring products that are ‘trend setters’ that cater to various price points. In addition, at Corseca we want to ensure the easy availability and access of our products to the consumer through both offline and online channels and most importantly we want to be a brand that is also known for its customer service.”
Akhilesh Chopra of Bluei says, “To counter grey market companies that are selling very poor quality products at very low prices, there should be some authorized bodies manned by qualified professionals who can check the standard of the cheap products before they launch in the market.”
Rajneesh Wadhawan of Glorious electronics asserts, “There are lot of opportunities in the Indian mobile accessories as the market is growing at very fast pace and finally the companies and brands that offer good quality products and giving the customer effective after-sales-service and warranty will be the WINNERS.”
Talking about the opportunities for mobile accessories providers in the Indian market, Ravi Kumar Daryani, Director, Zavia, reveals, “Three are many players in the market, but still there is a lot of opportunity for the committed players. The current challenge is that once products are developed, they should be supplied to the market and sold immediately; otherwise price-fluctuations, obsoleteness and imitation by the competitors can cost the providers a lot.”
Mandeep Arora of UBON asserts, “We aim to be the best consumer electronics and accessories company in India in terms of every aspect. Statistically speaking, only those brands would be able to survive who move parallel with the consumer’s demands, changing technology and trends. Indian consumers rely a lot on the ‘after-sales-service’ that remains an important factor when it comes to consumer satisfaction & customer retention and we cannot afford to compromise on that.”
Sudhir Kumar of AMYO comments, “To tap the unfilled vacuum, at AMYO, wer are aggressively exploiting our already existing strong distribution network.”
Ashok Rajpal from Ambrane India, states, “There is an unfilled vacuum as most market brands are unable to maintain standards. In our opinion, maintaining standards and thus gaining brand visibility & reach is not a short-term magic but a brand should have long term vision and time-based strategies.”
Manoj Seal of eGifts4all opines, “Yes, there is a vacuum–having proper sales & supply management will be a key factor to rule the market. Customer satisfaction will ultimately generate repeat-business and help to increase the market share over a period of time.”
Jitender Bhatia, JK Enterprises (JBTEK), says, “JBTEK is a Make in India brand. We provide excellent quality and after-sales-service through our distributor’s allover India. Every month we keep launching new models and new products. Today, Chinese brands are dominating our market by pushing aside the domestic brands. Indian mobile accessory brands should develop and provide world class products, stand up to the MNC brands, set new benchmarks to the mobile accessories industry”
Pranjit Hazarika of Punta reveals, “The industry will witness launch and subsequent emergence of lot of smarter brands from not only India but lot from overseas as well. See, I had mentioned earlier about choice of consumers on aspect of quality and design etc at an affordable price point.. I guess this will be the key aspect that brands will vie around while choosing their portfolio for this market.”
Pranjit Hazarika, Director, Punta India Pvt Ltd
“Companies are investing more on technology… the future holds bright for products with AI and wired are going to get replaced with wireless, comfort in usage and benefits will play a crucial role where technology will chip in. More products will get launched to attempt to create a niche in crowded sub categories.”
At Last
The Indian mobile accessories market is vast and fast growing, but there are challenges and grey spots. With people slowly but steadily shifting to wireless technologies, wireless chargers, headphones, earphones etc are going to witness a surge in sales in the coming times. There are a lot of grey market players who are selling accessories at dirt cheap prices. Though they do not give warranty and any kind of support, they are attracting customers who are looking only for cheap products, without bothering about the quality. Low quality products come at a very low cost but they cost is more in the long-run because the life of those products is short and the quality is hopeless. Make in India is still limping because government has imposed customs duties on essential imported components which the Indian manufacturing ecosystem is still not mature enough to domestically manufacture.
Overall the message is for the brands determined, systematic, quality-oriented, market-smart, and forward-looking and offering trendy features in their accessories, the Indian market will continue to provide a great number of opportunities to sustain and grow.