Samsung India aims at 50 billion sales in 2003-04

Tuesday, 16 September 2003, 19:30 IST
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KOLKATA: "We are targeting sales worth 50 billion to better last year's figure of 28 billion," R. Zutshi, director, Samsung India, told a press conference here. The company's burgeoning consumer electronics and home appliances division alone was hoping to notch up half of the total sales target of Samsung India, Zutshi said, adding that his firm was well on its way to achieving the goal. Samsung was planning to sell 400,000 refrigerators during the year, of which more than 200,000 had been already sold. The company was looking to up its market share in refrigerators to about 13 percent from the present 7.4 percent. Samsung had also set itself ambitious targets in the colour television and washing machine segments. Samsung's first refrigerator manufacturing unit that will produce seven models of both frost free and direct cooling types went on stream August 21 in Noida. The prices range from 9,100 to 27,000. "This highly automated facility at Noida is in keeping with Samsung's global expertise and standards. All the products are 100 percent CFC free," Zutshi said. The Noida manufacturing unit is Samsung's fifth worldwide, built at a cost of $25 million. It has a production capacity of 500,000 units per annum. "The domestic production of refrigerators in India is enabling us to offer a considerably strengthened product range to the Indian consumer and is also giving us the flexibility to respond faster to the changing needs of the consumer," Zutshi said. Zutshi announced the launch of Samsung's festival offer called 'Rub Ka Kamaal' in which a buyer could win gifts with every purchase by rubbing on a card. "We expect sales of 5.5 billion during the offer period which is from September 16 to November 15. We will give away gifts worth 105 million," Zutshi said, adding that the promotion will cost the company 250 million.
Source: IANS