Dubai: Aftron, the brand name for Al-Futtaim Electronics’ home appliances, is aiming to double its market share this year after the company unveiled its new brand identity and strategy.

Sean Connor, managing director of Al-Futtaim Electronics, told Gulf News after the launch that Aftron will always be positioned in the value-priced segment and, at the same time, add extra value-added features to compete with the premium segment.

“When you see our products with other products at the shelves tomorrow, you will see the difference. We will offer two–year swap-out warranty on any of the products and two-year additional warranty from Al-Futtaim for A/C compressors apart from the standard five years,” he said.

Aftron was started in 1994, when only Jumbo Electronics’ Supra was available as local brands. After a gap of 12 years, close to 15 value brands such as Geepas, Elekta, Nikai, Clikon, Super General, Beko, Midea, among others, mushroomed in the region.

According to a report by market consultancy AMRB, up to 50 per cent of the population in the UAE, and 65 per cent of the population across Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Oman and Iran, fall below the middle class. Large segments of those markets are defined as ‘value seekers’.

“Our aim is to position Aftron at top of the value segment and ensure a deliberate connection back to the Al-Futtaim brand, driving trust and reassurance,” he said.

He said that Aftron has a 12 per cent market share in certain product categories and eyes 25 per cent market share this year.

The product is available in 30 countries across the Middle East and Africa but Connor said that the focus will be on the Gulf Cooperation Council countries first and then to other markets.

“It is a very crowded market and we have a very solid footing plus the Al-Futtaim brand value. We expect to double our A/C and small domestic appliances [kettle, iron box, microwave oven and vacuum cleaner] sales this year and 40 per cent growth in medium domestic appliances [washing machines, fridges, cooking range] this year,” he said.

Al-Futtaim is sourcing the products of Aftron from top six manufacturers from China, Korea and Turkey.

“We are very confident of attaining our revenue projections despite the weak market sentiment,” he said.