PC sales during this year’s festival season will be 5-10% higher: Asus exec | Company News
 "Arnold Su, Vice President, Consumer & Gaming PC, System Business Group, Asus India")
Arnold Su, vice president – consumer and gaming PC, system business group, Asus India
Taiwanese personal computer (PC) maker Asus had announced an ambitious plan to have AI-powered PCs make up 5-10 per cent of its total shipments by the end of 2024. However, with demand surging, the company now anticipates hitting this target ahead of schedule, aiming for November instead.
Additionally, the company is expecting that the ongoing festival season will push sales up by 5-10 per cent compared to the previous year, driven by a new refresh cycle, a senior executive at the firm said.
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“During Covid, many consumers were forced to buy PCs. This resulted in a slight decline in PC sales in 2022 and 2023. In 2024, however, the new purchase cycle has kicked in, where customers are now looking to upgrade their devices,” Arnold Su, vice president – consumer and gaming PC, system business group, Asus India, told Business Standard.
Su added that this is also the first year for AI PCs, so many consumers are looking to upgrade to more powerful devices.
“Next year, AI PCs will be the main driver of growth for the overall business,” Su said.
India’s PC market, which includes desktops, notebooks, and workstations, grew 7.1 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to 3.39 million shipments in the second quarter (Q2) of calendar year 2024, according to data from the International Data Corporation (IDC).
Asus holds the fifth spot in the Indian PC segment, with a market share of 7.1 per cent during Q2 this year, down slightly from 7.3 per cent in the year-ago period, as per IDC.
The Taipei-headquartered firm is not a contender in the commercial PC market but witnessed significant 131.7 per cent Y-o-Y growth in this segment in Q2. Asus became the second-largest player in the consumer segment behind HP in 2023.
“In the second half of 2024, we will be a strong number two consumer brand in India. And we are making ourselves ready to challenge the number one position in the next two years. By the end of 2024, we are looking to cross the 20 per cent market share benchmark, up from 18 per cent last year,” said Su.
According to Su, Asus is aiming to corner around 25-30 per cent market share in the consumer PC market in the next two years. To achieve this, the company is doubling down on expanding its offline retail footprint.
“Currently, India’s PC penetration rate is just 11 per cent. We want to target the remaining 89 per cent of households, rather than competing within the existing 11 per cent households… By the end of 2025, our end goal is to be able to service 600 districts across India,” said Su.
As much as 70 per cent of the company’s sales come from offline channels at the moment. The PC maker will open its 300th Asus exclusive store on Thursday. In addition to that, the company operates around 1,500 “shop-in-shops” – retail outlets that sell Asus PCs.
Asus has also partnered with another 2,500 small dealers who sell its products. Put together, there are more than 4,000 shops in India selling Asus products.
“The Indian market is not just for entry-level products. It is for the latest technology and our premium offerings as well. Catering to this demand will also help us increase our market share further,” Su added.
First Published: Oct 02 2024 | 7:27 PM IST
