Dell ups Thai investment as it targets consumer IT ranking and corporate tablet market

Anothai Wettayakorn, managing director for Dell Corp (Thailand) and regional director for Indochina, said that products, people and marketing communication were the three key areas in which the company would invest in order to break into the top three in the Thai consumer IT market. It is currently a top-5 player in the segment.

"Overall, next year we aim to grow substantially in the consumer market. We aim to be in the top three vendors in this segment. Meanwhile, we are already number one in the corporate market, so we will not grow by double digits in that segment next year," he said.

Dell will invest more in human resources during 2013, open the Dell Experience Centre and invest further in its logistics system.

In total, the company intends to spend 50 per cent over and above its current investment budget through 2015.

In regard to logistics, Dell plans to improve its operations by introducing the "ship fast" build-to-stock system, enabling customers to get immediate delivery after placing an order.

"Dell’s supply chain can offer door-to-door delivery via ‘ship fast’," said the MD.

Seeking further success in the consumer segment, Anothai said the Dell Experience Centre would be opened next year to showcase the company’s products and solutions.

Another five Dell Concept Stores are also planned for next year, bringing the total around the country to 20.

With revenue this year having experienced only single-digit growth, the company is aiming for double-digit expansion in 2013, with consumer sales outpacing corporate income.

In the corporate segment, Dell will grow by offering solutions, especially in the fields of business intelligence and cloud computing.

Tablets seen as key growth area

Another major 2013 direction for the company is to focus more on tablet devices.

"Next year, we will focus on the corporate segment of the tablet market. There are huge opportunities in corporate use, and not too many vendors focus on this market segment," said Anothai.

Next year, the overall tablet market in Thailand is expected to account for more than 10 per cent of all computing devices, including desktop PCs, notebooks and ultrabooks.

The tablet market, which is currently dominated by the consumer segment, has expanded by 3 to 5 per cent this year.

Dell, which is to dedicated to designing tablets for the corporate segment, targets some 15 per cent of its overall computer shipments in 2013 coming from the tablet market. About 80 per cent of tablet shipments are expected to be for the corporate segment, and just 20 per cent for consumer use.

"Tablets are a huge growth market segment. This year, the tablet market is around 60 per cent of the 4 million units in the whole Thai computer market, but most of them are tablets for the consumer segment," said Anothai.

The healthcare and education segments of the corporate market are the priority targets for Dell’s tablet devices, as they are both high-growth areas, he added.

Dell will introduce a "test drive" programme, as corporate customers need to trial the tablets to ensure that they fit their applications and systems. Dell has set aside US$1 million (Bt30.5 million) for running the programme throughout the broader Indochina region.

Corporate users are concerned about security and manageability, both of which are Dell’s strong points in corporate systems, he said, adding that the company will offer an on-site service for tablets nationwide. A Dell service team will be able to reach customers the next day at the latest.

"Dell is the first tablet brand that offers a removable battery," said Anothai.

The MD also said Thailand’s overall IT market continued to grow, and the country would remain one of the main growth markets in Indochina due to its infrastructure and macroeconomic fundamentals.

"In the region, Thailand and Indonesia will still experience high IT spending next year," he added.