Astrum committed to quality and customer satisfaction

With the growing penetration of Internet, mobile phones and smartphones, demand for mobile accessories will increase. To meet the growing demand and to be a differentiator in the challenging market, Astrum expands its product portfolio with niche solutions along with a strong partner ecosystem. In a chat with VARINDIA, Manoj Kumar Pansari, CEO, Astrum Holding Ltd, also discusses about the challenges in the market, channel-enablement programs, future vision of the company, importance of R&D, etc

How do you find the accessory market in India?

Dynamically growing number of users’ exposure to Internet, mobile phones and smartphones users are obviously amassing as well and they all avail from broadband and Ethernet connections. As a result, usage of mobile phone accessories will likewise remain high, since consumers will apparently go for mobile phones, smartphones or tablets as a device for entertainment, leisure and other activities relatively. However, phony productions in the IT industry are a menace and now that pricing is becoming a significant feature for manufacturers in an attempt to maintain market reputation. Over 40% of mobile phone accessories revenues in India will remain under the mid-price range over the following decade.

What are the challenges being faced by Astrum in this market?

As every customer desires premium quality products at reasonable prices to keep up with the constantly developing trends and technology in every walk of life, we always have been in favour of providing our customers the best of both worlds. Taking into account every aspect from innovation to revenues, as we ourselves strongly feel that customer’s satisfaction is paramount. Another hurdle facing the IT Industry in our country remains, moreover, a threat to every quality brand, and that’s the glut of substandard quality products which leaves a bitter after-taste in terms of quality. Nevertheless, we, at Astrum, in the first place plan a strategy and aim to redefine your perspective to trends presenting you the up-to-the-minute technology.

How does Astrum differentiate itself from competition?

Astrum is persistently steadfast to quality, consistent dedication to customer’s satisfaction and wide sales and service network. Astrum has appointed new partners and key team members at different spheres to ensure the presence of the products at the nearest retails to you. Expansion in terms of product portfolio by bringing niche solutions, along with a strong partner and team remains the key focus area for the brand. The positive side is the brand within the brand. We have a huge category of product line within Astrum. We compete with multiple brands in the market for different products in India. The only thing we don’t compromise on is the quality of our product.

What kind of channel ecosystem does Astrum have? How is the company enabling its partners?

At present, Astrum is spearheading on building a strong channel network since we are a very channel-friendly company and expanding our reach by growing with our channel partners has always been our belief. For channel expansion, we have currently undertaken several training camps on “new technology” in India. Likewise, we consider our channel partners as a key part of Astrum as they are our staunch allies to our brand image. These camps facilitate two-way communication for the brand wherein we understand the needs of our customers which becomes the firsthand information. As this pathway is not a short-term but a long-term association for the brand, we are also working on several channel-friendly schemes and policies.

What is the future vision of the company?

The significant target of the Brand subsequently since its inception till now remains to enable people to get worldwide access to state-of-the-art technologies, in the field of consumer electronics. Aiming to make people “Experience the Difference”, a part of our widespread portfolio is an unparalleled range of over 1,000+ unique products across 40 categories.

How important is R&D for Astrum?

Astrum is a firm collaborator and believer in innovation, and innovation is the key differentiating factor of our business from other competitors in the market.