Interview: Hannspree

Andrew Wooden asks Martin Kent, Territory Manager for UK and Eire at Hannspree about growing monitor sales in a time when desktops are loosing ground, its tablet business, and its new football sponsorship contract.

So monitor sales are going well for you? Some would assume this is a struggling area, since desktops are always losing ground to laptops…

The HannsG monitor brand has sold 185,000 monitors so far this year.

This figure is in line with last year’s figures despite the economic downturn and the decreasing PC market. We have also maintained our top five position in the UK monitor market.

In fact as the laptop, and indeed the tablet PC, takes more market share, we have further opportunity to increase sales of higher profit monitors as more consumers choose to have a static large screen display for their mobile device, and are more conscious of design.

Many, such as students, are using their IT equipment as a means to watch TV and entertainment. These trends only fuel our sales turnover and market possibilities for monitors.

What about TVs? Is this an area aimed at PC retailers?

There is such a fine line between the PC and TV market nowadays, which is introducing a new rivalry between the specialist markets. The retailers that are winning are those that are recognising the technology convergence and embracing the opportunity to increase their portfolios.

Hannspree has predominantly sold through the IT channel because of the established relationships we have for the HannsG monitor brand, despite this, this year to date we have sold over 50,000 TVs which is already a 30 per cent increase on our TV business last year and we have become a top five brand in Ireland, based on sales. In 2012 we hope to improve on this growth again, so will be concentrating on further increasing our TV products’ retail presence and will be replacing soon to be out dated LCD technology with the more popular LED technology that consumers now expect.

You have your own tablet. How are you managing to differentiate it from all the other devices?

Capitalising on our visual expertise we created the Hannspad – an entry level tablet that has enabled consumers on a budget to embrace the new computing platform.

Introducing the Hannspad tablet has not only strengthened our product portfolio as part of our strategy to position Hannspree as a consumer electronics brand but has also opened up new retail partner doors, increasing our market presence. For example, Carphone Warehouse recieved the Hannspad, which it both sells and bundles in all 800 of its UK stores. The Hannspad is successful and competitive because it has just the right combination of style, price and technology for the mass consumer market.

Tell us about your football advertising.

As part of a marketing campaign to ramp up consumer brand recognition, this year Hannspree will have a presence at a total of 24 high profile football stadiums across Europe. In the UK we selected Blackburn Rovers, Everton, Sunderland AFC, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United.

Hannspree has always been dedicated to sponsorship marketing and takes a keen interest in the sporting world.

We get calls from colleagues and peers all of the time after they have spotted the Hannspree logo at a game or on the telly.