Mobile Magic in talks with OEMs for low-end handsets

In its attempt to tap the growing telecom as well as retail boom, Nagpur-based Mobile Magic India Pvt Ltd is looking to up its product portfolio in mobile phone handsets and applications as part of its expansion plans.

One of the first and largest of retail chain of mobile boutiques, Mobile Magic is in talks with OEMs like Fly, Spice and Hong Kong-based MBM to store low-end mobile phone handsets in its stores.

Started in 2004, the company has set up around 65 Mobile Magic stores in 50 cities.

The multi-branded stores already sell major brands of handsets like Nokia, LG, Sony Ericsson and other brands, apart from multi-branded accessories, and services like application downloads, servicing and training.

The company also sells its own brand of accessories called 'Mogo' which include memory cards, body covers, leather pouches, blue-tooth headsets and dongles, and battery chargers.

Chief executive officer of Mobile Magic India, Vijay Singh feels that the brands of mobile phone handsets which the boutiques sold were mostly of high-end value and the company found a need to introduce low-end basic phones and smart phones, and hence, began its talks with suitable players in the market.

Singh added that despite the boutiques hosting a number of brands, it is its in-house brands that sell more in accessories in the ratio of 80:20.

Differentiating itself from other telecom retail chains, Mobile Magic is focussing more on content and services.

"We stress more on offering better services like downloading, cosmetic and software-level repairing and other value-added services. We are also tying up with a US-based company Killer Mobile for more upcoming content and applications in the market, apart from our tie-up with Hungama for Bollywood content," said Singh.

The company will also launch movies made for mobiles, apart from the existing movies converted to mobile format, the job for which has been outsourced to Mumbai-based Trikaal theatres by Mobile Magic.

Mobile Magic also runs an in-house training centre called Mobile Magic Institute of Technology (MMIT) for students in diploma in electricalômechanical engineering, apart from offering job guarantee at its own stores.

Singh said that almost every month the institute churns out around 15-20 engineers.

High on its expansion plans, Mobile Magic has set a target of rolling out 150 stores by end of March 2008, around 500 stores by end of March 2009, and over 2,000 stores eventually by 2010.