Xiaomi is conquering all countries. Often compared to Apple for the design of its smartphones and
the resemblance of its physical stores with the famous Apple Store, the Chinese manufacturer
launched in France only eight years after its creation. The brand founded in 2010 in Beijing arrives
with two smartphones at aggressive rates, a connected scooter and a shop located in the heart of
Paris.

Number two in sales in China, number one in India, Xiaomi has everything to overshadow the main players in the sector. Already present in 75 countries around the world, the world’s fourth-largest seller of smartphones in the last quarter of 2017 has built a solid reputation in tech-savvy communities by offering quality products at unbeatable prices. Success is at the rendezvous so far. Last year, Xiaomi has sold more than 90 million smartphones worldwide. In Europe, where the brand is already the third largest player in Spain after only six months on the spot, the brand is showing insolent growth of nearly 1,000% in the first quarter of 2018.

1 – Three products for launch

Scooters, drones, laptops, batteries, TV boxes, rice cookers … Everything is in the catalog of Xiaomi
which has diversified over the years and is now based on a vast technological empire. the brand
arrives with three flagship products for the moment, two smartphones and a scooter, as well as
some accessories such as external batteries or wireless chargers.

First there is the Mi Mix 2s, a high-end 5.99-inch premium smartphone with a no-nicked edge-toedge
screen, a mirrored ceramic back, a dual camera with artificial intelligence for the bokeh effect and portrait mode, the most powerful processor of the moment (Snapdragon 845), 6 GB RAM, Android 8.0 Oreo, an interface inspired by the navigation gestures of the latest iPhone and compatible with the wireless charge. Proposed at less than 500 euros, it comes to frontally challenge the OnePlus 6 and Honor 10. Waiting for the Mi 8, a clone of the iPhone X expected for May 31.

Then comes the Redmi Note 5, a mid-range smartphone powered by the Snapdragon 636 processor
and equipped with a 6-inch elongated screen, a dual camera with AI, a battery promising a two-day
battery life, with 3 or 4 GB of RAM and 32 or 64 GB of storage from 199.09 euros. Xiaomi also arrives
with his electric scooter, the Mi Electric Scooter, a machine dedicated to city-dwellers able to run up
to 25 km / h with a range of 30 kilometers proposed at 349.90 euros.

2 – A CLONE OF THE APPLE STORE IN THE HEART OF PARIS

To highlight these products, Xiaomi has offered a shop in the center of Paris, 39 boulevard
Sevastopol, near Châtelet. Inside this first “Mi Store”, the resemblance to Apple’s stores is striking.
The focus is on the experience with large, uncluttered wooden tables, a dominant of white, many
products in demonstration, employees caring with customers and background music.

3 – QUALITY PRODUCTS AT UNBEATABLE PRICES

Founded by the creator of a successful e-commerce site, Lei Jun, Forbes’ 25th global fortune, Xiaomi
has made a name for itself by producing quality Android smartphones with a design similar to that of
the iPhone. Aggressive, “at the right price”, according to the company. In China, the smartphones of
the brand are selling between 120 and 500 euros.

Sign of its will to attack the market by tariffs, the brand is committed not to take more than 5% of
margins on its products, when its competitors can go up to 30%. To display these prices, Xiaomi
delegates the research and development of its products to start-ups in which it takes a stake and
then attaches its mark on the final products. The company also offers highly profitable services in
streaming music or video in Asia.

4 – A WIDE NETWORK TO REACH THE PUBLIC

Xiaomi products will not be sold in the “Mi Store”. While it was thought that Xiaomi would focus
mainly on its community of fans and word-of-mouth on the Internet to evangelize the public the
brand landed in the strong Hexagon of an impressive network of partners.
The brand announced Tuesday that its smartphones would be available soon in supermarkets, at
major distributors Darty, Fnac, Amazon, Leclerc, Discount, and at operators Bouygues, Free, SFR, and
Orange. No actor misses the call to reach the public. Its competitors Honor, OnePlus, Wiko or Alcatel
can expect to be jostled.