The Galaxy A55 and Galaxy A35 have officially landed in India. They are grabbing a lot of attention for their Galaxy S24-inspired design and feature set, but they’re also raising many eyebrows for their price. As Samsung makes them more premium gen-over-gen, getting the price right for its Galaxy A-series phones is a tricky proposition.
In an exclusive interview with FE’s Saurabh Singh, Aditya Babbar, VP MX Business at Samsung India, addresses the elephant in the room and how it plans to “consolidate” its market share further on the back of the new A55 and A35. Excerpts.
Let’s start by addressing the elephant in the room. The Galaxy A-series prices have shot up in 2024. The Galaxy A55 goes up to Rs 45,999. How do the A55 and A35 justify the price bump?
Aditya: The price is right. We have worked on a 3-d strategy for the A35 and A55. The first ‘d’ stands for democratisation of technology, where you see a design which is inspired by our flagship [S24], with a front and back [protected by Gorilla Glass Victus Plus], brushed metal at the side and floating camera. They are IP67 rated. We also have a flagship inspired camera and security with Samsung Knox Vault. Also, we are giving four times OS upgrades and five years of security upgrades. The second ‘d’ is the democratisation of affordability. We have our ears on the ground, and we understand that while consumers want the latest technology, it is our role to make it [more] accessible. The prices [of these phones] have not increased from last year. This year we have added a 12GB variant [for A55] because we want to innovate for all consumers, whether they seek a flagship or [more] features. Buying patterns are changing. Today, the conversations at retail are largely around per month EMI. The A55 comes with 24 months of EMI. Now, the EMI on an A15, which is a Rs 16,000-17,000 phone, is about Rs 1,600 and on the A55, it is Rs 1,792. That is where we see a lot of upgrades happening to a newer technology. Finally, the third ‘d’ stands for the democratisation of experience. We sell from a very large set of outlets because we have been able to make the entire setup ready for premiumisation. Availability of the phone at demo and a trained workforce are extremely critical and that is where we are making very large investments. [Around 25,000 odd A55 and A35 phones will be out there in the market giving the best experience to the consumers.].
Two years back, you had set a target to achieve 40 percent market share in Rs 20,000-45,000 segment with the Galaxy A-series 2022 line-up. What is your status in 2024?
Aditya: Our market share in the Rs 30,000-Rs 50,000 bracket is currently 31.4 percent. We are one of the fastest growing brands in the fastest growing segment. That is something we are very proud of. There are three consumer sets, the consumer set #1 is looking for design. The consumer set #2 is looking for features and while consumer set #3 is looking for innovative AI based features. Design happens to be a very integral and important part, but somebody who’s just looking for design at an entry point, the A35 becomes a great solution, where a consumer is looking for 12GB RAM, the A55 becomes a solution. And if the core need is about enabling and having generative AI on their phone, then the S24 becomes an answer. We feel the power should be in the hands of the consumers.
The general impression is that Samsung phones tend to be priced a bit on the higher side and then they tend to also fall, sometimes by a big margin, barely a few months after launch. People don’t like that, especially when they bought a product at launch price. What do you have to say to that?
Aditya: I think the best way to put this will be with context to the A35 and A55 or A34 and A54 as we are discussing the Rs 30,000-Rs 50,000 price point. There’s been no price drop from our side officially, but there have been time and again offers which have been put up seeing the market demands. Normally, the festive season is when you see most of the offers are done for the consumers and propositions are built on. But as we move forward in a product’s life cycle, there are propositions which are built to get the best for the consumers [hence the price revision].
What are your expectations from the A55 and A35— any numbers that you’re chasing internally?
Aditya: We would like to consolidate our market share even further with the A55 and A35. 5G and premiumisation are two very evident trends in the mobile market today. Last year, 50 percent of the phones were sold in the 5G bracket. This year, estimates are that two-thirds of the phones will be sold in 5G. Last year we were the number one shipment brand in the country. This year, the market will be lower single digit and the value is where you’ll see a double-digit growth. Premium market is where you’ll see the biggest growth coming in 30,000-50,000. We want to grow in line with the volume market, we want to grow faster in the value space and continue to consolidate our market share in the premium space.
Is there any update on Galaxy AI coming to the Galaxy A55, A35 anytime soon?
Aditya: We have been at the forefront of innovation and democratisation of technology. This [generative AI] journey is starting with the S24 and very soon coming to the S23 and S23 FE. We will continue to work on this part to make technology accessible and available to [more] consumers.
Do you want to talk a little bit about sustainability on these new devices?
Aditya: Again, as a pillar of democratisation of tech, it is not at all difficult. Consumers are keeping their phones for a longer period now. When that happens, there are two kind of needs which emerge. One is that they would want the best of tech in every aspect. Second, they would need software which lasts longer. That is what we have been working on and if you see the kind of GTM which we have built around that it, it is not [limited] to a particular segment of devices. Today, we give four times OS upgrades and five years of security upgrades even at Rs 12,000 price point.
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