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New Delhi: Dell Inc, the world's second- largest maker of personal computers, plans to sell PCs through retail outlets in India for the first time after forging a partnership with Tata Group's Croma chain of stores.
Dell's laptop and desktop computers will initially be available at some Croma stores in Mumbai next month, the Round Rock, Texas-based company said in an e-mailed statement yesterday.
The agreement builds on Chief Executive Officer Michael Dell's campaign to challenge Hewlett-Packard Co in stores, abandoning a practice of only taking orders via the phone or Internet. Dell, which plans to generate half its sales overseas by 2009, began selling products through Wal-Mart Stores Inc in June and has since reached agreements in Japan, Europe and China.
Dell's India revenue jumped 60 per cent to $700 million last year, outpacing growth in the US, Rajan Anandan, vice president of Dell India, said yesterday.
Sales in the country may climb to almost $1 billion in the year ending February 1, helping Asian growth offset the effects of an expected slowdown in the US, Steve Felice, the company's Asia president, said in February.
Dell rose 2.8 per cent to $20.56 in Nasdaq Stock Market trading yesterday. The shares have fallen 16 percent this year.
The company will start selling low-cost models in India starting next month, Anandan said yesterday, without providing details.
Higher salaries in India, the world's second-fastest growing major economy, are boosting PC purchases. Human resources consultant Hewitt Associates Inc. forecast wages in India will rise 15 per cent this year, the most worldwide.
The Croma chain of consumer-electronics stores, owned and operated by a division of Tata Sons Ltd, has 17 outlets in six cities, according to its website.
The Tata Group includes India's largest computer-services provider and the nation's biggest truckmaker.
Asian growth: Revenue jumps 60%
- Dell's India revenue jumped 60 per cent to $700 million last year, outpacing growth in the US.- Sales in the country may climb to almost $1 billion in the year ending February 1, helping Asian growth offset the effects of an expected slowdown in the US.- The company will start selling low-cost models in India starting next month.- Dell now also offers its products through Gome Electrical Appliance Holdings Ltd in China, Carrefour SA in Europe, Bic Camera Inc in Japan, and Carphone Warehouse Group Plc in the UK.
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