Ever since the split of the Mi and Redmi brands, Xiaomi’s focus on the premium segment of smartphones has been clear. 18 months in, the efforts are already bearing fruits as the company has announced strong growth figures for the new portfolio.
In early 2020, Xiaomi announced that its sub-brands, viz. Mi, Redmi and Poco will split to cater to different segments. This meant that Redmi would focus on bringing affordable products, Poco takes care of gaming, and Mi would slowly help Xiaomi establish its presence in the premium segments.
This started with the launch of the Xiaomi Mi 10 in 2020, followed by the Mi 10T series later in the year. It was the first time Xiaomi launched more than one smartphone in India that was priced over Rs 20,000. The trend continued in 2021, where, in just six months, there are already five premium Mi devices in the market — the same as Redmi this year.
In a virtual press conference, Xiaomi announced that its market share in the Rs 20,000 to Rs 45,000 segment had grown by almost 8x. With a share of almost 14%, Mi is now the third-biggest and fastest-growing brand in the premium segment.
#Mi brand records supersonic growth! 😍🚀 Fastest-growing Premium Smartphone Brand🚀 14% market share in the 20-45K segment🚀 Now as big as one of the biggest premium brandsIts a great start. But we need to keep working hard."Miles to go before we sleep" 🙏I ❤️ #Xiaomi pic.twitter.com/K32Bc9bfKzJuly 6, 2021
The growth implies that Xiaomi was not very affected to common and pertinent concerns such as “Who will buy a premium phone from Mi?” or “who will buy a premium phone in the middle of a pandemic?”. Other reasons for this growth the consistent increase in the average selling price of smartphones in India, better offline presence, increase in online shopping during the pandemic and more.
By the look of it, it seems like there will be more Mi devices coming to India in the future, as the category has now proven itself. They did confirm that Mi smartphones will continue to be priced over Rs 20,000, but there could be some overlap with Redmi devices.
Don't expect an India-exclusive premium smartphone any time soon.
Xiaomi’s foray into the premium TV and laptop segments have also been successful, with the Mi QLED TV 75 and Mi NoteBook 14 Horizon Edition being top-sellers in their respective categories. Home entertainment and laptops will continue to be a focus for the coming periods.
When asked about India-exclusive premium devices, Manu Kumar Jain explained that the segment is too small in India right now, but the R&D costs are much higher, which would greatly increase the price of the phone.
When the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra goes on sale tomorrow (July 7), it will officially enter the super-premium smartphone segment of India.
- Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra review
- Best smartphones under Rs 30,000 in India for 2021
- Poco F3 GT price in India, launch date, specs and more
