With small and medium enterprises, or SMEs, in Gujarat becoming more receptive to the use of information and communication technologies within their organisations, Lenovo is looking to become a market leader as an IT business solutions provider for the segment.
“Currently, we are at the fifth position in terms of catering to SMEs in Gujarat with IT business solutions. However, with the launch of our first Lenovo Business Store in Ahmedabad, we expect to grow fast in the state. Gujarat offers tremendous potential in the SME market. We hope to become the largest supplier in the segment soon in Gujarat,” said Rajiv Rao, director — SME, Lenovo India.
According to Rao, the company is looking to grow among SMEs in Gujarat on the back of industry-specific products like ThinkPad Edge, ThinkPad notebooks, ThinkCentre desktops and all-in-ones. Spread across 350 sq ft, the Lenovo Business Store offers notebooks, desktops, tablets, all-in-ones and accessories, including docking stations and business-travel accessories.
“Our ThinkPad Edge product is specifically designed for small businesses, since it includes Lenovo Solutions for Small Business (LSSB). This is a software suite that provides unique security and productivity features, including after-hours maintenance, USB blocker, and energy conservation,” Rao added.
Even among SMEs in Gujarat, Lenovo is particularly targeting the small office home office (SOHO) segment. Rao said that the SOHO segment in Gujarat is now looking to grow rapidly in scale, and is therefore planning to expand its IT infrastructure.
Moreover, since there are more than 350,000 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) spread across the state, Lenovo is also looking to increase the number of business stores in Gujarat. “We plan to set up similar SME-specific business stores in other cities of Gujarat, including Vadodara, Surat and Rajkot,” Rao added.
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Lenovo’s move to focus on SMEs in Gujarat comes at a time when these enterprises are gradually expanding their IT spending. “SMEs form 40 per cent of our total business in Gujarat. The first quarter of the current fiscal saw SMEs going slow on their IT spending, but it is gradually increasing,” said K J Thakker, president of the Ahmedabad Computer Manufacturers' Association (Acma).
According to Thakker, small and medium enterprises in Gujarat set aside an annual budget of 10 per cent for IT spending. In terms of hardware alone, Gujarat’s IT industry posts annual revenues of Rs 4,500-5,000 crore, said Thakker.