OnePlus came in the news last month for its alleged issue with offline retailers in India, who claimed they will stop selling the company’s phones at its stores. The Organised retailer association in the South-West region also gave an ultimatum till May 1 after which they would ban sales of OnePlus phones. We independently checked across stores in the Delhi-NCR region and some other parts of the country, and most people had OnePlus phones in stock.
But according to Kailash Lakhyani, Founder and Chairman, AIMRA, the situation is very much tense, at least until OnePlus manages to resolve the issue with the retailers and give them what they want.
OnePlus And Retailers In India: Where The Issues Started
Speaking to News18 Tech, Lakhyani cited the demands of these retailers from OnePlus and also walked us through the issues that forced them to act on the brand in the first place. “With OnePlus, the retailers were grappling with low margins, supply issues and other problems like delay in claim settlements for cashbacks that customers get immediately,” he mentioned.
Lakhyani pointed out that retailers had to wait as long as 6 months to get the money from the bank which isn’t ideal and was only happening with OnePlus. He explained the claim process was complicated with OnePlus and that even led to delays in settlement for up to a year in some cases.
And if that wasn’t enough, retailers also faced complaints about the green line display issue which was eventually offered as a free screen replacement by the brand.
However, the AIMRA chief said that OnePlus did not start the offer on its own, as it basically acted on the criticism that the brand got on social media which forced the company to roll out the program.
Have Things Moved On Now?
So, did the retailers in the South-West region stick to their May 1 deadline and ban sales of OnePlus phones at their stores? Lakhyani said that around 4500 stores in the region with 21 members included, have stopped doing business with the company. He pointed out that since April 18 they have not bought phones from OnePlus and they have already cleared 90 percent of the stock till date.
The good news is that the tussle between these entities could finally see a happy ending, where all parties involved should get the business rolling again. Lakhyani says that 80 percent of claim settlement has been finalised till May 15 and he expects the rest to be cleared in the next few days. However, there is one more issue that needs to be tackled and that is related to the offline store margins.
The Online Brand Finding Its Feet Offline
OnePlus has mostly functioned as an online-only brand in the market but its aggressive moves have meant that the offline market cannot be ignored anymore. However, dealing with retailers comes with its own set of challenges and the additional spending that online didn’t need.
The AIMRA chief highlighted that running brands inside offline stores need around 10 to 15 percent additional expenses which needs to be sorted out soon so that people don’t miss out on getting the OnePlus phone at their large network of stores across the country.
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