Dell eyes emerging markets with new consumer division

 

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By Alun Williams

Posted on 19 Feb 2007 at 07:31

Dell is looking to expand its consumer sales in emerging markets with the creation of a new division, dubbed the Dell Global Consumer Group. As the name suggests, its portfolio will include all Dell's consumer-oriented products, from desktop and notebooks to software and peripherals.

It is the first major move of Michael Dell since returning to the position of CEO. The company founder replaced Kevin Rollins earlier this month, and is seeking new revenues beyond the mature markets of Western Europe and North-East Asia.

The man head hunted to lead the organisation as President is Ron Garriques, formerly president of Motorola's Mobile Devices Division.

'As the number of people online doubles from one to two billion over the next several years, the majority of new consumers will be located in fast-growing and emerging markets,' said Dell. 'We are asking Ron to create a new global consumer organization that will set new standards for innovative product design, leadership in providing the best customer experience, and flexibility in how we build and distribute products and services to meet the evolving needs of our customers around the world.'

'We grew our US consumer business over ten-fold in ten years,' explained Dell. 'From this position of strength we've established robust share positions in many of the leading consumer businesses in the world including Japan, the UK and Canada. Our broad reach provides us with a strong foundation as we globalise our consumer organization.'

On his return Michael Dell announced that he was enthusiastic about 'Dell 2.0' and he is living up to his word by introducing two Web 2.0-style initiatives, Dell IdeaStorm and YourStories.

The former is intended to become 'an online community where customers can post their ideas on technology and Dell products and services'. The latter is a YouTube-style opportunity for uploading videos showing how people 'are using Dell technology and services for whatever they love to do'.

'We are at our best when we are hearing directly from our customers,' declared Dell. 'We listen, learn and then improve and innovate based on what our customers want. It's one of the real advantages of being a direct company.'