Oppo, Vivo are building warchest of Rs 2,200 crore to overtake Samsung in India

Chinese smartphone makers Oppo and Vivo are building ammunition to beat Samsung in India and for this, they are raking in whopping Rs 2, 200 crore in marketing this year.

The amount apparently exceeds the marketing budget of Samsung, LG, Videocon, and Sony.

Oppo and Vivo are going to spend the money in expansion of their sales network by 25% through non-conventional stores, and consumer electronic stores.

Reportedly, Oppo and Vivo have also asked several smaller cellphone stores to reduce their focus on Samsung smartphones. For this, they are willing to compensate the potential loss of business.

"Oppo-Vivo are focusing on volume sales, paying retailers upfront for prominent signages and branding for the next 1-2 years and even offering 5-10% more margin to retailers and shopfloor sales promoters," a senior executive with a leading cellphone retail chain told ET.

They are taking up the outdoor advertising space like never before. ET reported the two companies are spending more than Rs 20 crore each on outdoor media in large cities and are also expanding the advertisement thrust to smaller towns and rural markets. They are now approaching shops or spots that do not even deal with cellphones.

Counterpoint Research analyst Karn Chauhan said Oppo and Vivo are ramping up their distribution presence driven by strong push from their aggressive marketing campaigns.

"Ramping up not just the offline presence but their service network and bringing new features in the product portfolio will be the key to beating Samsung in India," he told ET.