FOCUS: Chinese phone brands top sales as buyers seek lower prices

By Yekaterina Yezhova

MOSCOW, Jul 11 (PRIME) -- Two thirds of 4.4 million smartphones sold in Russia for over 100 billion rubles in April–June were by Chinese brands as the clients turn to cheaper devices, retailers said.

“In April–June, Russians preferred Chinese manufacturers, popular and new ones, which offer high-quality devices with the necessary technical features that suit every pocket and needs,” Andrei Petrov, head for product communications at electronics seller M.Video-Eldorado, told PRIME.

He added that a high level of confidence and good variability help these makers satisfy demand and offset partially a decrease in sales of other major brands.

Xiaomi, realme, POCO led the sales with a 7% rise on the year in units, regardless of an overall sagging of purchasing activities and changes in the supply chains.

Xiaomi Redmi 9A with 32 GB was the April–June hit, Petrov said.

The Chinese brands have been taking the country’s market steadily, from 50% in January–March to 60% in April and 70% in June. They accounted for more than 65% of sales in April–June against 50% a year earlier.

The most popular devices were in the price range of 10,000 to 30,000 rubles. The top five brands were Xiaomi, which climbed to the first place from the second a quarter earlier, while Samsung, realme, Apple, and POCO followed. The average check decreased by 4% on the year to 22,300 rubles in April–June, according to M.Video-Eldorado.

In January–June, the smartphone prices increased by 6.9%, the Federal State Statistics Service said in a statement.

The most popular brands at retailer Citilink in January–June were Xiaomi, Samsung, and realme, which elbowed Apple from the third place held in 2021. “We see rising interest to the smartphones by the Chinese brands. In Citilink, the Xiaomi smartphones took the lead a long time ago. For example, sales in units of the realme smartphones almost tripled on the year in January–June,” a company spokesperson told Russian Connection.

The buyers opted for cheaper devices in 2022 than in January–June 2021. “Most of the inexpensive models of smartphones meet the basic demands of an average user today, and the buyers choose cheaper models to save money,” the spokesperson said.

“Low-priced devices have been always in demand, but this year we have seen a shift of the interest towards the models with a price tag of below 10,000 rubles. In this segment, the most popular gadgets were Xiaomi Redmi 9A, Samsung Galaxy A02, and Samsung Galaxy A03 Core.”

In the medium-priced segment, Citilink’s bestseller was Xiaomi Redmi Note 10S with 128 GB, while Apple led the premium segment with the iPhone 11 with 128 GB, the iPhone 12 with 128 GB, and the iPhone 13 with 128 GB. The retailer’s January–June smartphone average check added 6% on the year.

According to Citilink, when choosing a smartphone, the buyer pays attention more often to a brand, inbuilt storage and random access memory, a smartphone series, and a screen diagonal.

Nikita Tikhvinsky, head of the digital devices cluster at M.Video-Eldorado, said the retailer is making steps to offer its clients the widest possible assortment while maintaining attractive prices amid the dramatic changes on the country’s market of electronics and the current situation.

“The prices of the majority of devices stay at the February level and lower, payment in instalments is provided, promotion campaigns are being held, the bonus program continues. We continue to work with an available pool of partners, expand the assortment of customary brands by offering original products with our own guarantee and servicing. Now we offer in our chains some 500 models of smartphones by Chinese companies, up 10% than a year earlier,” he said.

“It is still early to speak about long-term changes in the consumer trends – the range of usual flagship models widens gradually, manufacturers still compete for our users.”

(61.2664 rubles – U.S. $1)

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