Can you believe that realme Malaysia is all set to celebrate their 5th Anniversary in the country soon? Expect new realme devices, promotions, and deals to empower Malaysia’s youth! But before that, we managed to get some time with Michelle Tiong Wei Ping, Product manager of realme Malaysia, for some insights into their Epic 5 year journey and ongoing plans in Malaysia. Read on to find out more.
1. How will realme keep up their momentum in the market seeing as how other brands are coming up with price-friendly gadgets that have decent specs and functions?
Michelle: Championing our "No Leap No Launch" aspiration, realme will continue to lead Malaysia’s market by following our Spire Strategy - where each generation of products will come with a true-leap in improvements and technological advancements. We understand that young users in the smartphone market have suffered from a glut of devices that didn’t deliver expectations...
Our answer for this includes our latest realme Number series, the realme 11 Pro+ 5G which offers flagship tech specs and features like a large storage of 512GB and a world’s first 200MP OIS SuperZoom camera yet is priced below RM2000. We will continue to implement such flagship features into non-flagship categories to help empower the youth with our GT Series, Number Series and C Series devices. In addition, we will roll out several new brand experience initiatives such as upgrading our brand stores to version 3.0.
At the realme 11 Pro+ 5G launch
realme's Spire Strategy
2. How will realme define itself as a brand in the Malaysian market? Will it focus more on the youth or aim for the budget-friendly?
Michelle: We pride ourselves on being a trendy, innovative brand that challenges the norm. Focusing on both the youth and the budget friendly, our smartphones will boast a leap-forward in performance, design and experience that does not break the wallet. We aspire to be the most preferred smartphone brand for the youth in the next 5 years.
realme understands that for Malaysian Youth celebrities and influencers play a major role
Mimi Lana, a Malaysian actress is one of the brand ambassadors for the realme 11 Pro series
Jovane, an influencer is also a brand ambassador for the realme 11 Pro series
3. Please elaborate how realme will achieve a position in the Top 5 phone brands in the Malaysia market given that there are a lot of aspects to be considered for a long 5-year plan
Michelle: Entering the second stage of growth as a startup, we are now looking at long-term growth, focusing on product development and market growth. For product development, our smartphones will follow true-leap advancement where devices will be significantly better than previous offerings. We will also partner with new parties to strengthen product design and solidify our leading position as the trendiest brand in the industry.
More notably, a recent report from Canalys, indicated that realme Malaysia has returned to the top five smartphone list as of Q2 2023. It recorded an annual growth of 18%, the highest and only double-digit growth among the top five brands. realme believes that this is just a beginning and it will reach higher peaks by the end of the year.
We have chosen “Leap Up” as our brand focus for the next five years. It carries a simple meaning. To Leap Up means to move with focus, ensuring all leaps taken will bring us to higher peaks, and fulfil higher goals.
For market growth, our Leap-forward Climbing plan is guided by 4 main principles which we will reveal more of at the upcoming launch event.
Michelle Tiong, Product Manager of realme Malaysia offers insights on realme's 5 year journey in Malaysia
4. How has realme’s journey been like these past 5 years?
Michelle: There’s a saying in Chinese: “Newborn calves are not afraid of tigers”, and this idiom accurately depicts realme’s fearless journey. realme had an unthinkable beginning – offering a smartphone with powerful performance and stunning design ignited our passion, but little did we know how tough the competition was back then. The year realme was founded, 2018, was a heyday for the smartphone market, with 701 brands, including the well-known tech giants, aggressively capturing the piece of the market like a hunter looking at its prey.
Motivated by a "Dare to Leap" belief, the fearless founding team at realme decided to make an entrance into the oversaturated market, and the rest was history. realme quickly made a mark in the world. It was crowned the world’s fastest smartphone brand to achieve a 100 million sales volume around the globe.
On a global level, realme has been living up to its name as an innovative and trendy brand by introducing multiple first-of-its-kind cutting-edge technologies and designs to the world, such as the price segment’s first smartphone with a 108MP main camera (realme 8 Pro), and the segment’s first smartphone with Sony IMX766 OIS camera (realme 9 Pro). Notably, the latest realme 11 Pro Series was the first smartphone within the segment that came with a 200MP, 4x Lossless SuperZoom feature on top of customised filters co-created with Lonely Planet.
realme is also the first smartphone brand to tap into the pop, culture and art scene by working with renowned brands and designers. In October, 2018, we had our first meet up with Naoto Fukasawa, an illustrious Japanese industry designer, and co-created the realme X Master Edition. We are the first smartphone brand pioneering such a partnership with the realme Master Design one of our more iconic devices. The realme 11 Pro series, which is currently the talk of the town, is a masterpiece co-created with the former Gucci print and textile designer, Matteo Menotto. The unique design coupled with the lychee vegan leather for a premium texture further solidifies us as a leader in providing leap-forward designs. Notably, we have also worked with brands like Coca Cola, Dragon Ball, Naruto and more. The innovations that resonate with the young generation gave fame to realme and helped it bag the honor of the world’s fastest-growing smartphone brand.
realme worked together with designer Matteo Menotto to create the realme 11 Pro Series
One could wish for smooth sailing all the time but it’s not always the case. As the Covid-19 pandemic creeped in, realme’s performance was then affected by the weakening macroeconomy. However, we quickly re-strategised and rebounded from the bottom by emphasizing online channels, streamlining our product line and implementing a ‘Simply Better Strategy’. Such a change in mindset gave birth to ‘No Leap No Launch’, which is our aspiration.
Closer to home, realme has been actively keeping a strong bond with its users. It rolled out multiple programmes to make a lasting impact in Malaysian youth’s life, such as the Walk into University project, as supported by the realme SEGi Scholarship, realme Talent Recruitment, realme Special University Student Offer and Mobile eSport Tournament. realme is one of the leading mobile phone brands in Malaysia despite a fierce competitive landscape.
5. According to Counterpoint Research, the market will recover in the next few quarters due to the increase in new models and the number of consumers. How does realme plan to take advantage of this trend?
Michelle: Offering a quality smartphone with leap-forward technology and design has been at the core of our strategy. Championing the ‘No Leap No Launch’ aspiration, realme has set up a specialised Global Institute of Leap-forward Technology, a Research and Development centre, as well as three realme Design Studios across the world. These dedicated resources illustrate realme’s strategy and determination to accelerate leap-forward innovations for future devices. Meanwhile, realme also plans to beef up its investment in R&D by 58%.
Nestled in Shenzhen, China, the Global Institute of Leap-forward Technology is primarily tasked with developing major innovations in technology, while the India-based Research and Development centre will provide guidance to future development based on authentic feedback and insights. These centres grant realme significant flexibility and agility in product development.
The realme Global Institute of Leap-forward Technology, supported by 60 global technical experts, is dedicated to seeking innovation in six major aspects, namely Charging, Photography, Display, Gaming, Chipset and Industrial Design. By delivering smartphones with advancements that challenge the industry standards, powered by a strong R&D team, we are confident that we can have the upper hand to win over consumers’ hearts.
6. In conjunction with the 5th anniversary, will realme launch a series of anniversary activities or discounts to celebrate with their fans?
Michelle: We are all set to unveil a number of realme devices and we can’t wait to share the good news with all of you in the upcoming launch event. Please watch this space closely.
7. Can you please share realme’s upcoming development plans in Malaysia?
Michelle: Our aspiration of "No Leap No Launch" can be translated into our promises to ensure surprising elements in our products and overall tactile experience. This means we are looking to deliver a greater brand experience to our customers.
A notable development we have made lately was upgrading our Brand Store. We have upgraded four Brand Stores in Pavilion Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur; Sunway Pyramid, Selangor; Palm Mall, Negeri Seremban; and Ipoh Parade, Perak, into Brand Store 3.0 to offer an enhanced walk-in retail experience. At the same time, we are also improving and expanding our e-commerce channels.
In addition, we will continue to bring in top-notch devices with leap-forward technology and design to empower youth to be more daring to leap forward in their daily lives.
So that’s about it for realme Malaysia’s upcoming 5th Anniversary and their 5-year long adventure with Malaysia. Are you one of those realme fans? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave for more articles like these.
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