Super high-end cell phone manufacture Vertu has expressed strong hope for deeper penetration into the Vietnamese market, a source cited the company as saying.
The world’s unique maker of handcrafted, individually hallmarked handsets said this is an ideal period of time for its penetration into a fast-growing economy, said Christopher John Harris, Vertu global marketing manager.
Vertu, an arm of Nokia, is selling 20 units here each month, he said, declining to reveal sales and revenue figures since the handset hit the local market in February.
The company is now selling Signature, Assent and Diamond models through Vietnamese leading cell phone distributor FPT Distribution - a branch of the country’s largest IT solutions firm FPT Corp.
The prices Signature and Assent range between US$5,000 and US$23,000 each while a Diamond model reaches US$42,800.
The company’s market survey showed there was increasing demand for super luxury goods, said Harris.
Vietnamese consumers are willing to splurge on luxury goods but take a long time to make a final decision.
Therefore, Vertu will focus on intensive marketing strategies to learn the psychology and taste of consumers in the country, he explained.
FPT will open a showroom in Hanoi in addition to the existing one in Ho Chi Minh City, the two largest commercial hubs in Vietnam.
Vietnam is among the world’s most prolific mobile phone markets with some 4.7 million sets are estimated to be sold this year and 6.3 million next year, a recent survey by market research company GfK Asia shows.
The mobile phone market is estimated to generate US$877 million in 2006 and US$1.1 billion in 2007.
Vietnam is expected to have 36 million mobile phone subscribers by 2010, up from some 13 million now, according to the Ministry of Posts and Telecom.
Thanh Nien Online
Vietnamese
