JayMart opens first dedicated BlackBerry store

Research In Motion (RIM) has joined hands with major mobile-device retail chain JayMart to launch the first dedicated BlackBerry by JayMart Lifestyle Store.

The move is aimed at allowing potential customers of BlackBerry smart phones and the BlackBerry Playbook tablet to experience the devices and accessories before purchasing. The shop, which officially opened yesterday, occupies 140 square metres at Siam Paragon. RIM’s Rohilesh Singh, senior director of retail strategy for East Asia, said Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia were a high growth market for the company, which wants to be well placed to handle the potential demand for smart phones and tablets in the area. Opening the dedicated retail store is the company’s strategy for keeping potential customers in touch with BlackBerry products and giving them the experience of touching and trying before making  a decision to purchase, he said. "Customers throughout Southeast Asia are the same in that they want to experience technology products by touching and trying before buying. The concept of the BlackBerry Store in Bangkok is to follow this trend," said Singh, adding that the outlet has 60 devices on its shelves. He said RIM’s sales in Thailand showed the same high growth as in other Southeast Asian markets. In Thailand this year, he said, smart phones overall represented 17.2 per cent of the mobile-phone market, a level that is expected to reach 49.6 per cent in 2015. On today’s opening of the store to the public, the first 99 customers to buy a BlackBerry device will get a 50-per-cent discount on their purchases. Nineteen units of the BlackBerry Bold 9900 will be among the products available for the discount. Meanwhile, JayMart chief executive officer Adisak Sukumvitaya said BlackBerry devices were one of the company’s strongest smart phones in terms of unit sales, with more than 10,000 a month having been sold by JayMart in recent months. "At the more than 200 branches of JayMart throughout the country, the smart-phone unit sales break down is Samsung at 43 per cent, Nokia at 20 per cent, BlackBerry at 18 per cent and LG at 12 per cent," said Adisak. He said JayMart expected revenue this year from its main three business units of mobile-phone shops, space rental and debt-repayment pressing for other firms to come in at Bt5 billion, 10 per cent higher than last year. Profit is forecast to grow by 60 per cent.

JayMart opens first dedicated BlackBerry store

Research In Motion (RIM) has joined hands with major mobile-device retail chain JayMart to launch the first dedicated BlackBerry by JayMart Lifestyle Store.

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