Realme has seen substantial growth in the mid-premium segment in India, driven by their Number series and GT series, which has grown by 27% year-on-year, Sky Li, founder and CEO of Realme told exclusively to The Hindu on the occasion of the brand completing six years of existence.
The Chinese smartphone brand, carved out of Oppo, made it into India’s top 5 smartphone brands with 17.4 million sales in 2023 alone and selling 100 million smartphones in the country over the last five years, informed Li.
Realme made its debut six years ago on May 4. It is a part of China’s BBK Electronics with sister brands like Oppo, OnePlus, iQOO, and Vivo.
Realme was introduced to counter the influence of Xiaomi’s sub-brand Redmi in markets like India that sells affordable and feature-rich phones for the masses.
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It started selling smartphones first, later ventured into smart TV business and expanded into IoT products like TWS and smartwatches. Surprisingly, it exited the smart TV business in 2023 to ‘optimise’ its product portfolio.
“Over the years, we’ve grown into a global phenomenon with over 120 million fans worldwide, breaking,” said Li. Realme is also being credited to bring India’s first 5G smartphone in 2020 and also surpassing 200 million smartphone shipments globally in November 2023.
“Indian buyers have been instrumental in our success story, and we look forward to many more years of making memories, achieving milestones, and delivering groundbreaking technology that enhances everyday life,” Li said.
Further extending its gaming-centric GT series, Realme has announced to launch a new GT series phone (probably Realme GT 6T) in India soon.
“GT series will make a comeback this year in India. Disrupting the mid-high end segment with value-driven excellence is a goal that we are all set to conquer this year,” said Li.
In 2024, Realme intends to become a tech brand that resonates with the youth and delivering flagship-level performance to its customers. It is anticipating a good year as the reach of affordable 5G phones grows in India
