Xiaomi India Shuffles Leadership Roles; Manu Kumar Jain to Focus on New Categories

Another calendar week, another news from Xiaomi's camp! Last calendar week, the Chinese giant had confirmed that the much-loved POCO brand is very much alive and volition continue to operate as an independent brand in 2020. It also appear the revival of the "Mi" make in India. And at present, Xiaomi Bharat is reshuffling a few leadership roles, where Global VP and India MD Manu Kumar Jain will be shouldering new assignments.

The company's Chief Operating Officer Muralikrishnan B volition make full Jain's shoes and pb the offline expansion across India, equally ET reported over the weekend. Until appointment, Jain was leading Xiaomi's expansion to more brick and mortar stores. The visitor has grown to over 2,500 Mi Stores, 75 Mi Homes, and twenty Mi Studios – selling more than one meg devices offline over the past couple-odd years.

The leadership reshuffle sees Sunil Baby, Xiaomi Bharat's director for offline sales, reporting to Muralikrishnan. The company's category and online sales lead Raghu Reddy will keep in his part, with both him and Muralikrishnan reporting to Jain.

The role changes were announced internally last week. Sources close to the development reveal that Jain will keep in his existing role as Xiaomi India'southward managing managing director. He will, however, focus on the company's expansion to newer global markets (expected to be Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka) and strategic investments in India.

Xiaomi may have started its India journey with smartphones over 5 years ago, but it has since built an IoT ecosystem. It has launched everything from voice-controlled smart TVs and smart lights to water purifiers and more. At present, Jain could possibly divert his focus on disrupting some other unexplored product category such every bit smartwatches or laptops (one of the almost anticipated button from Xiaomi) in India. He would as well play a major role in the "Mi" brand revival, which would be interesting to see.

As for the offline market, Xiaomi will continue its expand its presence in brick and mortar stores in India. It is especially relevant now, with pressure mounting from Realme too as Samsung in the upkeep and mid-range segment. The company aims to double offline sales in 2020 to maintain atomic number 82 over its competitors.