LONDON ㅡ Samsung Electronics is betting on the niche luxury home appliance market in Europe which is still reeling from a financial crisis.
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| Samsung Electronics President & CEO Yoon Boo-keun, center, poses with Michael Ward, CEO of the Harrods department store, left, and the U.K.-based designer Kelly Hoppen who undertook the interior work for Samsung’s store at Harrods before the opening ceremony held late Tuesday in central London. / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics. |
On Tuesday, the Korean electronics giant opened a “corner shop” in Harrods, the most prestigious department store in the U.K., in order to increase exposure of its high-end appliances and to expand into other European markets.
The opening of the shop is part of Samsung’s strategy to compete with its bigger rivals such as Miele of Germany and Dyson of the U.K., which currently lead in the upper-end European appliance market. Samsung has been steadily chasing the appliance behemoths in Europe.
“As about 50,000 people come and shop at Harrods on a daily basis, the presence in the department store will help enhance our brand awareness particularly among high-income Europeans,” Yoon Boo-keun, president and chief executive of Samsung Electronics’ consumer electronics division, told reporters on the sidelines of the opening event.
“Increased exposure of Samsung products for Europeans will also allow the company to make profits from sales of the premium lineup of refrigerators, televisions, dish washers and vacuum cleaners,” said the president.
In an ambitious plan, Yoon said Samsung is targeting to beat the market leaders to become the top player in the world’s home appliance market in 2015. “We believe a series of innovative products, an improving brand image and an enlarged premium lineup will result in a bigger market share in the coming years.”
But he didn’t provide any target sales figures or market share.
Samsung’s appliance products are definitely being recognized as an “up and coming” brand in global markets, Yoon Lee, vice president of the company’s sales and marketing team, said, adding a growing number of consumers want Samsung’s interactive appliances that they can control using mobile gadgets.
A look at Samsung’s performance in Europe over the past five years finds robust demand for refrigerators and microwave ovens has driven up its appliance sales. Samsung said it took 11.3 percent of the European refrigerator market in the first half of 2013, up from 9.8 percent a year earlier. But it didn’t give a breakdown on sales of other products.
Samsung, which usually earns about 20 percent of its overall sales from the home appliance division, posted 110 trillion won ($100 billion) in total sales for the January-June period.
To make its store at the 120-year-old Harrods successful, Samsung has partnered with Kelly Hoppen, a well-known interior designer based in the U.K., and chef Michel Troisgros recommended by the Michelin guide.
During the opening event, Kelly said her “collaboration with Samsung was like a journey to experience what kitchens we are going to have” in the future. Michel prepared food using Samsung appliances.
Asked why Harrods has accepted Samsung as a partner, Michael Ward, CEO of the department store, said “Samsung is the best in innovation and is a rapidly-growing brand in the market.”
