Beyond laptops and printers, HP eyes dominant position in tablets

How is your online shopping store different from your website?
The online store launched in August allows customers to buy a product as well, and has the complete HP product range, compared with the website which is limited and doesn’t allow for actual sales. Our own research showed that 81% of consumers’ buying decisions are influenced by online product viewing and in India, 70% of customers know exactly what they want before going to a brick-and-mortar store to complete the purchase.

Does this mean HP will compete with channel partners and e-retail sites including Flipkart?
No, Flipkart and other e-commerce sites are our customers – generating around 5% of sales revenue for us, so we will not be competing with them. We are also very happy with our channel partners and in fact, increasing channel presence in far-flung parts of the country to reach out to rural customers. While we are not expecting online sales to overtake physical sales, the online store is expected to generate more awareness of our products. The online store also has a very user-friendly interface, making search optimisation much easier.

What is HP’s best-selling product today?
According to the IDC Asia Pacific Quarterly PC Tracker, HP’s PC market share has jumped to 34.1% in Q2 2013. The IDC Quarterly HCP Tracker also shows that HP has a market leading 57% and 50% share in ink jet and laser printer categories, respectively. Laptops are still are highest selling products in the consumer computing segment with 65-70% sales while we are witnessing a transition in the desktop space with all-in-ones (AIOs) doing better in metros. With the Windows 8 OS coming in, touch screens are also growing very fast in the PC and laptop space. We also launched the HP Chromebooks in the US, which will be launched in India as well, along with other multi-OS platforms.

So, what is HP doing differently to stay ahead?
Our PPS (printing and personal systems) growth in India is being driven by product innovation, competitive prices, a strong channel network in terms of reach and long-term customer relationship, and a robust service network. We also ensure our call centre is updated on answering various queries on products, buying experience.

What is the plan going forward?
We want to be known as a leader in all form factors – not just PCs and printers. Tablets are an extension of our PC business and in fact, HP’s ElitePad tablet is leading in the APAC region. However, it is too early to comment on getting into the smartphones business.