LIFE & STYLE

Acer expands lifestyle range

Times Of Sudan

Acer Thailand, the local operating unit of the Taiwanese computer vendor, is embarking on energy drinks for the first time among tech players and is gearing up to supply a series of connected devices to capitalise on digital lifestyles and go beyond the computer market.

“We will continue our journey in dual transformation strategies by committing to our core business of the computer market as we have done over the past four decades and establish multiple businesses for growth as part of our diversification from the traditional PC industry,” said Alan Chiang, managing director of Acer Thailand and vice-president for the Indochina region.

This year, Acer will thrive by offering lifestyle brands that offer products to live, work, learn and play, he said, adding, “Acer is no longer a PC-making company but a digital lifestyle firm.”

 

New businesses are expected to make up 30% of the company’s revenue by 2025, up from 15-20%.

“Our ultimate goal is to attain half of our revenue from new businesses within 10 years,” said Mr Chiang.

New lifestyle brands will be driven by innovation and technologies, such as 5G, virtual reality and Internet of Things (IoT), he said.

Nitipat Praweenwongwuthi, marketing director at Acer Computer, said Acer will enter the energy drink market for the first time by May under the “PredatorShot” brand by leveraging its sub-brand “Predator” gaming computer.

The energy drink will be geared towards gamers who need extra energy, he said.

“Apart from Taiwan where this drink is available, Thailand will be the first in Southeast Asia to sell this drink and serve as a manufacturing base to export products to the region,” Mr Nitipat said.

The company is also offering social gaming platform Planet9 for eSports, which enables gamers to register and collect their statistics. The platform uses advertising and revenue-sharing models.

According to Mr Nitipat, the company will expand the pet product line for Pawbo brand, expanding from automatic cat feeding machines.

The company is also supplying air purifiers under the Acerpure brand with onsite services as well as devices for cyclists under the Xplova brand.

Acer’s Halo speaker will be rolled out this year, he said.

The speaker is a digital assistant in the vein of Amazon’s Alexa.

In the commercial segment, Acer works with partners to offer solutions for smart education, smart industry and smart healthcare.

According to Mr Chiang, the shortage of computer components has been a critical issue since the first wave of the pandemic but the situation is expected to bounce back in the second half of this year.

The shortage of products in the supply chain led to flat revenue despite strong demand for computer devices for remote work and online learning, he said.

PC sales in Thailand fell 6% in 2020, pressured by the supply shortage, Mr Nitipat said.

 

 

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Check Also
Close
Back to top button