'Amar PC' -- a new neighbour in town

Amar PC, meaning 'My PC', has made its entrance to the Bangladesh market through Bengal Airlift Ltd., local distributor for the brand. A grand launching ceremony announced this in the city on May 6.

Through the launch, Xenitis for the first time steps outside its country on export issues. Future plans of both the manufacturer and distributor companies hold high hopes about creating a growth in the PC-oriented market trends that currently exists in the country.

"Our main objective is to make it available and accessible for the customers across the country," said Atif Rahman, director, Bengal Airlift Ltd. He mentioned that initially they are focusing on introducing six different models, which is being offered by Amar PC.

Terming it a bold step towards a newer kind of language movement, Rahman referred to how the word 'Amar' is strongly expected to attract local buyers, considering the fact that now Bangladesh stands as the export market for the brand. Xenitis has done its own research on the current status of the country's growing ICT market and the industry as a whole before deciding on its export drift.

Amar PC already shares a very competitive local pricing, starting from Tk 14,000 to Tk 40,000. Bengal Airlift has already received 250 bookings in advance for the product, which is likely to hit the market by the end of this month.

Amar PC will be available from at local outlet of Bengal Airlift located in Gulshan 2.

"The local PC market is a chaos," Rahman said, blaming the high-pricing of every electronics and computer product. "People are even afraid to go out and fetch a quotation for a PC, worrying that they might not afford it," Rahman added, citing how he will look forward towards a positive response from local buyers on how the Amar PC products are priced.

The director also informed there is a good opportunity for establishment of a testing and assembly plant in Bangladesh from Xenitis. He pointed out how small local plants may further reduce the price tag. "Such manufacturing or assembling plants will also create a growth in the nation's economy, as Bangladesh is a small country with a large population," Rahman shed his hopes.

The local PC market has already become a competitive one and local users do not always want to purchase an expensive brand PC. This further creates a better chance for such a neighbourhood-assembled brand to attain a good grip in the market.

Currently, Bengal Airlift has three local system engineers working at their Gulshan service centre, while two Indian engineers will join the team soon. The distributors hope to set up more service centres around the city with a rise in the sale of the product. "We'll look into assuring quality customer service, and it'll be our key step towards allowing the brand to build its own market here and Bengal Airlift will utilise the right blend of its logistics towards this vision," Rahman mentioned.

In time, the company also plans to import laptops from Xenitis. "Our country holds a good future for the use of laptops," stated the director while pointing out the huge number of non-government organisations (NGOs) operating in Bangladesh and their necessity of mobility in their line of work. "Laptops might be the next big thing after GrameenPhone," he continued, explaining how laptops can create a better working environment for typical field workers, who may in turn create mass computer-oriented awareness among the rural residents in time.

Xenitis Infotech currently holds a testing and assembling plant worth Rs 260 crore in India, while the production plant for Amar PC is situated in China under Unitek Computers Company Ltd. The Chinese Unitek company essentially manufactures computer cases and SMPS, media chips and peripherals such as keyboard, mouse, CD/DVD Rom drives, speakers and home theatres for brand PCs.

"The whole effort is focused on modulating a new, creative breakthrough on how Bangladeshi buyers look at PCs," specified Rahman, referring to how the pricing of the brand and prompt after-sales service will allow for a tremendous growth in the number of PCs that were locally purchased before. This approach can make PCs available and purchasable for students, local entrepreneurs and educational institutions and others.