Acer Inc, the world's fourth-largest branded personal computer vendor, said on Thursday that it is set to more than triple its sales in China this year through its own retail network.
"We target more than a 200 percent sales increase in value terms for 2006 even though price erosion is set to persist and even intensify," said Lay Tai-yueh (
Acer is under pressure to expand its sales of notebook computers, which form its core business accounting for nearly 70 percent of its shipments worldwide, in China this year given the lower profit margin of the industry.
In the first quarter to March, Acer registered consolidated sales of NT$83.05 billion (US$2.55 billion), including NT$71.78 billion generated by its IT product business in which the Chinese market took a 6 percent stake.
During the same period, Acer's ranking in the Chinese notebook computer market rose to fourth place in shipment terms, from seventh in the previous quarter, according to statistics compiled by research firm Gartner Dataquest.
Its notebook computer deliveries on the mainland jumped 136 percent quarter-on-quarter and soared 208 percent year-on-year to nearly 110,000 units, taking about 8.8 percent of the market there.
Acer attributed its stronger position in China to its new "channel business model," deployed in China from the second half of last year. In contrast to Dell Inc's direct sales, Acer draws customers through its own network of retail outlets.
Its market position only trails behind Lenovo Group's (
Lay said Acer's new channel business model makes possible the lowest operating cost and optimal product management and channel structure. He said the ability to launch new products ahead of its peers is crucial to Acer staying competitive.
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