HCL to foray into distribution of consumer durables

Updated: Wednesday, December 11, 2013, 13:16 [IST]

Soon after the announcement of its plans of phasing-off the computer manufacturing business gradually, IT services major HCL Infosystems is now set to foray into distribution of consumer durables, including TVs, washing machines, refrigerator and kitchen appliances. The move underlines the company's attempt to revive itself and improve margins.

Bhattacharyya, Chief Strategy officer of the company, was quoted in The Economic Times report saying "The rejig is needed to save the company". Previously, the IT services company forayed into providing security solutions to offset the risk involved in the hardware business but failed in its attempts.

The manufacturing of computers that is heavily dependent on the import of hardware components, including hard disk, motherboards, memory and monitors, gets adversely affected in case of unfavorable exchange rate. To this effect, the company head stated " In fact, now, we stay away from any business that has a large forex component.

For the proposed venture in the consumer durable segment, the company has associated with a number of players in the space, including De-Longhi, Braun, Whirlpool, JBL and Hamilton Beach. Further, to push its reach into the rural and remote areas, the company is planning to tie-up with other consumer durable manufacturers.

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