Lenovo bets on smartphones, infrastructure to double India business in 3 years

Global technology major Lenovo aims to double its business in India over the next three years, driven by strong growth in its Motorola smartphone segment and high double-digit expansion in its infrastructure and services businesses, a senior company official said.

Lenovo Asia Pacific President Amar Babu said the company’s growth in India is being supported by rising domestic consumption and its “India for the world” innovation strategy.

“Lenovo in India is a growth story. And the opportunity exists to sustain that growth story across all our businesses. Our Motorola business has done exceedingly well. We’ve more than doubled our revenues in the last two years. Our infrastructure business is growing in high double digits,” Babu told PTI in an interview.

“Our services and solutions business are growing in high double digits. Our hope and our vision is that we’ll be able to double our business in the next three years,” he said.

Babu said that if Lenovo achieves this target, it would be supported by continued innovation, infrastructure development and contribution to the local economy, along with sustained investments in backend capabilities.

“And if we are able to achieve that, of course, with the right level of innovation, infrastructure and contribution to the local economy, while continuing to invest in our back-end capability and continue to build this narrative: of India, for India, and India for the world… I see India as a growth business, as a growth market for Lenovo worldwide,” he said.

According to Babu, Lenovo India is among the company’s fastest-growing markets globally, recording growth of over 20 per cent.

He said Lenovo is designing its mainstream servers in India, while a significant portion of the software for Motorola smartphones is also being developed locally.

On hiring plans, Babu did not provide specific numbers but said the company would continue to add resources in line with business expansion.

“When a business grows, we will add resources as needed. We will add infrastructure as needed. And we’ve been doing that very consistently ahead of the curve. India is one of our fastest-growing markets. With that opportunity, with that growth, we will definitely continue to invest, hire and make sure that we are able to build the right talent base. India’s talent market is incredibly attractive,” he said.

“And we have India talent not just for our India operations, we have our India talent across all of Lenovo across the world,” Babu added.

Lenovo India reported a 23 per cent year-on-year increase in revenue to USD 1.2 billion in the September quarter, supported by strong demand driven by digitisation, premiumisation and improved consumer sentiment following the GST rejig.