HP ROLLS OUT RETAIL ROAD MAP FOR ASIA-PACIFIC, TO FOCUS ON INDIA

Supriya Verma Mishra, Hong Kong, November 17, 2008
The Economic Times

Hewlett-Packard (HP) has announced an aggressive strategy to offer a whole-new retail experience and customer support.

At its annual event in Hong Kong recently, the company unveiled its strategic road map to roll out 7,500 stores in 1,000 cities across the Asia-Pacific, with a strong focus on India and China. The company also used the occasion to showcase the latest technology products and solutions by HP’s Personal Systems Group (PSG) and Imaging and Printing Group (IPG).

With India being one of HP's key growth markets, the company plans to increase its presence in metropolitan cities as well as tier II and III cities. HP India will engage with over 8,000 outlets by 2008-end and, by the end of 2009, the number is expected to exceed 12,000 outlets across 700 towns and cities. Further, the company will also continue to expand its base of exclusive stores.

The gaming industry is estimated to touch revenues of $48.9 billion by 2011, according to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Of this, the Asia Pacific region will contribute about 40%. To tap this burgeoning market, HP has partnered Electronic Arts, the world's leading independent developer and publisher of interactive entertainment and game software for console systems.

HP has also teamed up with Wild Tangent to offer games pre-installed on HP consumer desktop and notebook PCs. Ajay Mohan, vice president, marketing, Personal Systems Group, HP Asia Pacific and Japan says, "With Electronic Arts, we found a strong synergy in providing customers across all age groups a unique PC experience and an avenue to express themselves, with imagination as the only limit. HP is definitely bullish about the gaming industry’s potential."

HP is forging tie-ups with retail chains, such as Future Group, to set up Digital Photo Centres wherein customers can create and print personalised collections and gifting items.