Epson Bets on Neighbouring Markets as Thai Sales Lose Steam

[Anonymous]

Epson Bets on Neighbouring Markets as Thai Sales Lose Steam
(Bangkok Post (Thailand) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge)
March 18 2014–Seiko Epson Corporation, the Japanese maker of printers and projectors, will seek more revenue from Indochina this year to offset the impact of declining IT spending in Thailand.

Yungyong Muneemongkoltorn, the general manager of Epson Thailand, said the company plans to increase revenue from Indochina to 17% in fiscal 2014 starting on April 1, up from 15% in fiscal 2013.

Epson Thailand also oversees operations in Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Pakistan, covering a combined population of 400 million.

The local operating unit expects revenue to grow by just 5% this year, down from an earlier 10% forecast.

New high-capacity printers will be released this year to expand the customer base to the garment and retail industries, in addition to inkjet models with affordable cartridges to serve small and medium-sized enterprises.

Mr Yungyong said high-capacity printers are expected to make up 40% of the country's inkjet market in 2014, up from 30% last year. Epson Thailand has a 44% share of the market in unit terms and 59% in value terms.

But the inkjet market overall is expected to continue shrinking this year because of the economic slowdown and changing consumer behaviour.

Thailand's inkjet printer market contracted by 26% to 800,000 units last year.

"We expect revenue from industrial customers to increase to 60% this year, up from 55% last year," said Mr Yungyong.

He acknowledged that the local political unrest resulted in flat revenue for Epson Thailand in fiscal 2013, compared with 10% growth in 2012.

The company detected a sharp decline in IT spending from both the private and state sectors beginning last October, but it expects the upcoming Asean Economic Community to create new opportunities in the region.

Epson has been aggressively expanding in the region over the past decade through partnerships with local companies.

Mr Yungyong said the company retained its leadership in Thailand's projector market last year with a 26% market share.

But the competition in projectors looks set to grow fiercer in Thailand, with a maximum of five players expected to survive out of the current 10.

Hiroki Yamamoto, the Singapore-based director of Epson South and Southeast Asia, said despite Thailand's political turmoil, the country remains Epson's second-largest market in terms of revenue in Southeast Asia, trailing only Indonesia.

But he warned that if the crisis drags on for another year or two, Epson could lower its investment here.

Aung Kyaw Moe, director of Client Focus Technology Group, an authorised Epson distributor in Myanmar, said the computer market in that country is expected to skyrocket, perhaps even double or triple, over the next few years with the imminent roll-out of 3G commercial service.

Myanmar's mobile network expansion has potential to boost the number of internet users significantly from the current 6 million. Sales of smartphones and tablets are also set to surge.

In the past decade, Myanmar's IT market grew by 15-20% a year.

Sales of computers in Myanmar averaged 60,000 units a year, 30% of which were desktop computers and the rest notebooks and tablets.

An entry-level notebook retails for less than US$300, while a tablet costs about $100, said Aung Kyaw Moe.

Epson Bets on Neighbouring Markets as Thai Sales Lose Steam
(Bangkok Post (Thailand) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge)
March 18 2014–Seiko Epson Corporation, the Japanese maker of printers and projectors, will seek more revenue from Indochina this year to offset the impact of declining IT spending in Thailand.

Yungyong Muneemongkoltorn, the general manager of Epson Thailand, said the company plans to increase revenue from Indochina to 17% in fiscal 2014 starting on April 1, up from 15% in fiscal 2013.

Epson Thailand also oversees operations in Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Pakistan, covering a combined population of 400 million.

The local operating unit expects revenue to grow by just 5% this year, down from an earlier 10% forecast.

New high-capacity printers will be released this year to expand the customer base to the garment and retail industries, in addition to inkjet models with affordable cartridges to serve small and medium-sized enterprises.

Mr Yungyong said high-capacity printers are expected to make up 40% of the country's inkjet market in 2014, up from 30% last year. Epson Thailand has a 44% share of the market in unit terms and 59% in value terms.

But the inkjet market overall is expected to continue shrinking this year because of the economic slowdown and changing consumer behaviour.

Thailand's inkjet printer market contracted by 26% to 800,000 units last year.

"We expect revenue from industrial customers to increase to 60% this year, up from 55% last year," said Mr Yungyong.

He acknowledged that the local political unrest resulted in flat revenue for Epson Thailand in fiscal 2013, compared with 10% growth in 2012.

The company detected a sharp decline in IT spending from both the private and state sectors beginning last October, but it expects the upcoming Asean Economic Community to create new opportunities in the region.

Epson has been aggressively expanding in the region over the past decade through partnerships with local companies.

Mr Yungyong said the company retained its leadership in Thailand's projector market last year with a 26% market share.

But the competition in projectors looks set to grow fiercer in Thailand, with a maximum of five players expected to survive out of the current 10.

Hiroki Yamamoto, the Singapore-based director of Epson South and Southeast Asia, said despite Thailand's political turmoil, the country remains Epson's second-largest market in terms of revenue in Southeast Asia, trailing only Indonesia.

But he warned that if the crisis drags on for another year or two, Epson could lower its investment here.

Aung Kyaw Moe, director of Client Focus Technology Group, an authorised Epson distributor in Myanmar, said the computer market in that country is expected to skyrocket, perhaps even double or triple, over the next few years with the imminent roll-out of 3G commercial service.

Myanmar's mobile network expansion has potential to boost the number of internet users significantly from the current 6 million. Sales of smartphones and tablets are also set to surge.

In the past decade, Myanmar's IT market grew by 15-20% a year.

Sales of computers in Myanmar averaged 60,000 units a year, 30% of which were desktop computers and the rest notebooks and tablets.

An entry-level notebook retails for less than US$300, while a tablet costs about $100, said Aung Kyaw Moe.

[Author]

March 20, 2014 at 11:06 AM