Eros Group registers 45% annual growth in UAE market

Dubai: Eros Group, distributor and retailer in consumer electronics, has seen a 45 per cent annual growth in the UAE market, a top company official said on Sunday.

The UAE-based company has expanded in the Middle East and now also covers Qatar, Bahrain and Oman markets as well as East African countries of Kenya and Tanzania.

"The growth in these markets has been tremendous," Deepak Babani, chief executive of Eros Group, told Gulf News.

The group's sales hit Dh980 million last year. This year, Babani said, their target was Dh1.3 billion, but their expectations have risen to project sales of Dh1.5 billion.

"I'm sure we will be able to cross this figure as well," he said.

Babani said the group will continue to focus on its current markets until it has realised their full potential. And currently, they have no plans of entering new markets.

Speaking on the growth factors, Babani said: "Our major growth engine has been home appliances and LCD TVs (liquid crystal display televisions).

The growth in LCD televisions has been over 100 per cent for the past few years."

Last year the market was estimated to be 160,000 sets, but by the end of the year, the market figures swelled to 180,000.

This year the estimated market demand is 240,000, according to Babani. "With the way the trend is going, it could reach 280,000 to 300,000."

He said the booming real estate has propelled the electronics industry growth in the region. "The total electronics market, without the information technology products, is worth about Dh6 to Dh7 billion," Babani said.

Active in the market for four decades, the company carries brands such as Hitachi, Samsung, Taurus and Lennox, Nokia and Sony Ericsson to offer consumer electronics, digital products, home appliances, telecom, air conditioning and allied multi products in the Middle East.