Oppo jumps on to 'Make in India' bandwagon; to start India plant by August

In line with the government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, most companies have announced their plans to build their devices here. The latest to jump on to the bandwagon is Oppo. Oppo has announced its plans to set up its manufacturing plant in India by August this year. In a press statement, Oppo’s vice president Sky Li said, “India is the top priority in our expansion plans in South Asia this year. We have received tremendous support and appreciation from the customers and it’s now time to reciprocate the feeling. The smartphone boom in India indicates the time is just right to focus on expansion plans and increasing volume in India to a comparable level with the China market in the next five years.” The company says it’s already among the ’top three’ players in Indonesia, and expects the 2015 to be all out expansion. The company also has 13 percent mobile market share in Vietnam and 11 percent in Malaysia. It expects to sell 15 million units this year. The manufacturing units here will aim at serving the local market and may also look into other international markets. Recently, Gionee also announced to be working towards setting up a fully-owned factory over a three-year horizon in the country as a part of its ‘Make in India’ plan. The company has already made an initial investment of around Rs 300 crore for the factory and has so far invested Rs 200 crore on its Indian operations. It has also employed about 70 employees towards the same.