http://gadgets.ndtv.com/mobiles/news/60000-redmi-1s-phones-go-out-of-stock-in-139-seconds-says-xiaomi-600044
Xiaomi is a phone producing firm that produces primarily smart phones. The article refers to their sales in India where they rack up some amazing numbers from flash sales including selling 40,000 phones in a mere 4.5 seconds.
Their success in the form of their sales can be classified into two separate business strategies Porters generic strategies including cost leadership and focus strategy. For the functions the Xiaomi phone has, its performance/specs and visuals are similar to iphones. Using the latest iphone 6 (6000HKD) as an example, the Xiaomi sells for almost half its price(~3000HKD) for nearly the same features which is one of its attractive qualities. Comparable to other major phone companies such as Samsung and LG, Xiaomi’s low price serves as a great alternative to a expensive luxury smart phone which will be one of the main reasoning behinds its successes in India as stated in the article.
As for focus strategy,unlike major phone companies, Xiaomi is only purely aimed at the Asian market. This is supported by the fact that apart from online ordering, Xiaomi is only available in Taiwan, Hong Kong and mainland China. Since the market is so focused within a specific region, it means it will be easier for developers to receive better feedback from the target market consumers and be able to make changes based on that, making it more appealing for them.
My views on this is that there are many negatives of the method in which they are using. The negatives of their cost leadership strategy is that because their price is so much lower. Their revenue gain per unit sold will be less compared to other phone companies. Despite this, the quantities they are able to sell within a short span of time may be able to compensate for this. Another disadvantage of this lies in the fact is that they only sell within Asian markets. If xiaomi were to expand its territories and sell in western countries, the low cost may appeal to more consumers hence increasing revenues as a whole.
As for the advantages, the opposite side of the coin for focusing on an Asian market is that they will be able to receive better quality advice and suggestions from the target market so developers will know what the general populous wants. This way they will be able to sell more in their target market.