Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone maker, is now operating in the U.K. market, launching its Mi 8 Pro handset in the country on Thursday (Nov. 8).
According to a report in Reuters, citing Xiaomi Senior Vice President Xiang Wang, the company said the U.K. had a “cool” factor that meshed with its appeal to customers. “The U.K. is one of the important global centers for technology,” Wang said in the interview before the Mi 8 Pro was launched. “It is a young, energetic place, so pretty much fits to our culture – we want to be the coolest company in our fans’ minds.”
Xiaomi, which is currently the fourth-place player, has a market value of around $44 billion. The company first targeted India as a market to expand into outside of Asia, and was able to surpass Samsung for the top spot in the country. It expanded into Spain last year, launched in France and Italy during 2018 and is now adding the U.K. to the lineup.
The Mi 8 Pro has a dual camera that is powered by AI, a 6.21-inch high-definition AMOLED display, a fingerprint sensor and a glass back cover. The company will also launch its Redmi 6A device, which is priced at $130 in the U.K., as well as other products in the Mi range, such as the Xiaomi Mi Band 3 fitness band and an electric scooter, noted the report.
Xiaomi plans to sell the products online and in-store in the U.K. It will also have an authorized Mi outlet that is slated to open in London’s Westfield shopping center on Nov. 18. “Online, we will do mi.com and we will work with every online channel, including Amazon and others,” Wang told Reuters. “Offline partners will include Carphone Warehouse and the exclusive launch carrier channel will be 3.”
The launch by Xiaomi in the U.K. is part of its plan to become the everything company. With the mobile handset market getting crowded around the globe, Xiaomi, the Chinese handset manufacturer, is branching into new markets, eyeing any that aren’t already saturated.
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