LG may invest Rs. 1000 Crores to make smartphones in India

LG Electronics could start making smartphones in India once it grabs a 10% market share. That milestone is expected to be achieved this December with the recently launched G4 smartphone. The company plans to spend Rs.1000 Crores this year on R&D and marketing.

"I reckon G4 is one of the best smartphones introduced in India lately. Leveraging this, my aim is to double our market share and increase the contribution of the mobile business to 15% towards our overall revenue," Soon Kwon, Managing Director, LG India, told ET.

"Once we hit the 10% market share (in cell phones), manufacturing will eventually follow", he said.

The company currently holds a market share of sub 5% according to research firm GfK. Its mobile business is pegged at around 10% of India’s revenue.

The company would join Xiaomi, Motorola and Asus as one nurturing local manufacturing plans. The Indian government made imported phones more expensive than ones made and assembled in India in the new budget. This is an incentive for companies to ‘Make in India’.

"The Indian R&D contributed significantly towards the development of this device. It's the first premium phone with dual 4G SIM support," Kwon said.

"R&D is the core of our business. We want to be very diligent in terms of bolstering R&D capabilities in India," he added.

LG could invest Rs. 500 Crores toward R&D in India and another cool Rs. 500 Crores in marketing and promotion.

(Image credit: Indiatimes)