Sanyo aims to double revenues in the region

Japanese electronic firm Sanyo aims to at least double its revenues in the region to $400 million (Dh1.5bn) in the next two years by strengthening its commercial equipment and consumer electronics portfolio, Emirates Business has learned. "The Japanese market is so saturated that the overseas market is the one that we are focusing on," said Takashi Hirao, chairman of Sanyo Gulf and chief regional officer of Sanyo Middle East, Asia and India. "We intend to expand our market in this region and double our sales to $400m by 2010." The Middle East, Africa and India region is currently the company's smallest market with consolidated sales of $220m last year , or 5.8 per cent of the total $3.76 billion global sales. The United States has the lion's share with sales of $1.28bn, followed by Europe with $870m. The world's number one producer of rechargeable batteries has sales of $740m in China and another $470m in the rest of Asia. Hirao said the company planned to increase sales in the US to $2.2bn, Europe to $1.2bn, China to $1bn and the rest of Asia to $600m by the end of the decade. The goal is in line with Sanyo's three-year strategy plan for 2008-2010 announced last month and the company's master plan announced last November. Specific targets were outlined, all focusing on completing Challenge 1,000 – a call for the group to achieve operating profits of $1bn within 1,000 days. On March 31, the company announced operating profits of $761m thanks to increased sale of digital cameras, rechargeable batteries and electronic devices. "In this region we will focus on five core products – projectors, digital movie cameras, biomedical equipment, commercial air-conditioners and HIT solar modules," added Hirao. "The UAE, Saudi Arabia and Turkey will be our main target markets." He said Sanyo aimed to increase sales of its PLC-XC55 and PLC-XC50 projectors by expanding in the education sector. "We will offer products to various schools in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Kazakhstan." Xacti VPC-CA8, Sanyo's digital movie camera designed to withstand water, rain, water spray, splashes and even submersion, will be launched within two months in the region. Sanyo's Gulf chairman declined to disclose the price of the camera but revealed that sales campaigns will focus on active lifestyles led by people such as sports enthusiasts and outdoorsmen in Turkey and the UAE. In the biomedical equipment sector, he said the company would strengthen its portfolio with the MPR-513R pharmaceutical refrigerator and the MPR-414R, a combined refrigerator and freezer. "We will expand sales to hospitals and medical centres in Saudi Arabia that are due to have medical equipment improvements." The company will offer solutions to meet standards and support large-scale investments in construction projects in Egypt and Pakistan through its energy-saving air-conditioners and absorption chiller. In the energy sector, he said while Sanyo had not yet received any orders for its HIT Solar Module, a photovoltaic system, the company had received inquiries from various companies, including Masdar, Abu Dhabi's green energy initiative. Solar energy is not particularly viable for individual use due to the cheap subsidised energy in the region, but Hirao is positive the company will nevertheless win a significant slice of the growing green business. "It may not necessarily be that the cost of energy from solar is cheaper here but what's important is that green projects here are supported by the government so we expect our energy business to grow a lot."