By Kim Yoo-chul
Staff Reporter
SUWON, Gyeonggi Province ― Samsung Electronics will stir up its marketing efforts to increase the global sales of its home appliances by more than 30 percent this year.
``We will raise home appliance sales in key markets by using our digital media distribution channels, while strengthening distribution partnerships with regional dealers,’’ Park Jong-woo, president of the digital media business for Samsung told The Korea Times, Sunday at the company’s technology compound, here.
The remarks came a month after Samsung appointed Almo and Climatic, America’s leading appliance distributors, for Samsung branded home appliance products in the saturated but highly-competitive North American market.
Samsung then said this new distribution program will enable independent U.S. appliance dealers to source the company branded appliances from two high-experienced appliance distributors.
``Internally, we are aiming to increase the home appliance sales by over 30 percent globally,’’ a high-ranking Samsung official said, adding time is very crucial for Samsung to increase marketing budget to achieve the goal.
Its home appliance unit accounted for some 22 percent of the digital media business’s total global sales of 26 trillion won, last year. Samsung leads the North American and European flat-screen markets and the company maintains healthy relationships with Best Buy, Sears and Home Depot of America.
``The recent unit reorganization mainly targets a `synergetic effect’ to shy away from the currently staggering performances of the home appliance segment,’’ Park added.
A month ago, Samsung slashed staggering business units through massive reorganizing steps. Under the measure, its home appliance division, which makes freezers, air-conditioners and washing machines, combined with the digital media segment, which is responsible for TV sets and monitors.
Unlike the impressive moves of its rival LG Electronics, Samsung’s home appliance division has virtually failed to increase its global share in recent years due to its hesitancy in allocating more cash for the development of related core technologies.
Samsung’s R&D budget for home appliances was known to be less than 1 percent of its total sales, distracted by a greater focus on memory chips and flat-screen TV businesses, Samsung insiders say. LG was spending some 5 percent of total sales solely on research and development in its home appliances.
Park said the decision to send MP3, notebook PC and set-top box businesses to the telecommunication network division led by Choi Gee-sung, has also been in line with Samsung’s strategy for synergy in mobile business.
``PC business must break down barriers and be armed with technology competitiveness as mobile phones are developing further amid an era of digital convergence,’’ he said.
Separately, the executive will give an opening speech at the upcoming ``Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA)’’ show for the third time after then Samsung’s digital media chief Choi Gee-sung did in 2003 and 2006.
IFA is one of the largest consumer electronics trade in the world. The annual show will be held in Berlin, Germany from Aug. 29 to Sept. 3 with an estimated 1,300 companies from 34 countries attending.