Cashify WhitePaper 2021

2021

VOL.5 | ISSUE 1

THE GAMECHANGER’S GUIDE TO RE-COMMERCE

An inside look at the second-hand smartphone market in India

Table of Contents Founders Say

01

02

Introduction

05

Introduction

Recommerce=1. 2020=0

The Reign of Refurbished

09

India’s Favourite Brands: 2020

11

Apple

11

OnePlus

13

Oppo

15

Realme

17

Samsung

19

Vivo

21

Xiaomi

23

For The Love of Brick And Mortar

25

The Boon & Bane of Virtual Education

27

Phone-atics

29

Yearly Roundup

31

Founders Say 2020 turned the tables for all of us and how! With so much happening around the world, it was no less than a rollercoaster ride. Some well-known, mega brands had to shut shop in India, while some dormant ones got to see the light of day again. Lockdowns and the Indo-China conflict had to have an impact on the smartphone industry as well.

As sentiments soured between the neighbouring countries, the interdependent smartphone markets faced new

Mandeep Manocha Co-founder & CEO, Cashify

challenges. Join us as we reminisce everything that shook up the mobile business during this past year.

A major migration from offline to online took place last year.

Locked within their houses, everyone had to make do with whatever was accessible online. Shopping, working and studying was done digitally. As lockdown restrictions eased and people started stepping out, our focus again was solid on expanding our touchpoints with smartphone users. For those who still preferred offline, over ten Cashify Stores were launched in the second half of 2020 all over India. Bringing

Nakul Kumar Co-founder & COO, Cashify

you these and more details from the Indian mobile industry from 2020 in this edition of Cashify White Paper.

The world never stops at the backend. The already tech-dependent world came even heavily to rely on the virtual last year. Our focus suddenly shifted to getting as much done as possible without leaving our homes. Apps replaced classrooms, offices, malls and more. This has made things even more adventurous at the tech end. Bigger innovations were called for and we were up for it. New app launches, integration with brands such as Apple etc. kept

Amit Sethi Co-founder & CTO, Cashify

us occupied. Hope you have a good time finding out our analysis of India’s smartphone market in 2020.

01

Introduction Let’s all say this once and for all about 2020: “What A Year!” Things started out smoothly on the Indian front. Cut to March, “lockdown” became a buzzword across the world, thanks to COVID-19. Subsequently, the ‘New Normal’ took over our old habits and practices. Fast forward a bit more and we had the Indo-Chinese conflict in our midst. But how did it all pan out for the Indian smartphone industry in the past year? Let’s find out!

Stuck at home, Indians, much like people all over the world, found a window to the world in their smartphones. Cooking, gardening, working out, working from home, studies, selfies, OTT platforms; you name it and everything came to circle around smartphones. As a result, Indians ended up spending about 25% more time on their phones in 2020 than in 2019, bringing the average time spent on mobile phones to about 7 hours a day.

Due to nationwide lockdowns, the heavily China-dependent Indian smartphone market saw some dwindling numbers. Chinese manufacturers that dominated two-thirds of the smartphone market in India had to worry about constant imports so that stocks don’t dry up. The market was about to take a massive turn as tension started brewing in the India-China border. With the ban of Chinese apps and products, the Indian government came all guns blazing to support homegrown brands.

02

Vocal For Local Atmanirbhar Bharat

VOCAL FOR LOCAL

Vocal For Local, or Atmanirbhar Bharat was a campaign undertaken by the government to enable Indian manufacturers to gain dominance across industries.

A 4% to 6% Production Linked Incentive (PLI) on incremental sales of goods manufactured in India was promised to eligible companies for 5 years under the National policy on Electronics, announced on 1st April, 2020. Result? Former players invest ₹500Q4 Crore Q1like Micromax Q2 set out to Q3 to reinvigorate its lost business.

The festive season (September-October) clocked incredible shipments and predictions of 5G smartphones to be shipped 9 times more reaching a whopping 38 million units in 2021 are in place. Owing to the Indo-Chinese conflicts, top-selling brands like Xiaomi were overtaken by Korean giant Samsung by the third quarter of 2020. With such numbers, insights and predictions, our conclusions have never been more dynamic.

Let’s take a look at the Quarterly Smartphone Shipments in India (In Million)

53 31 Q1

44 18.2 Q2

Q3

Q4

The first two quarters might have started slow in terms of smartphone sales, with 4% and 03

(-)50.6% YoY growth in the first and second quarters respectively, the third quarter more

Introduction

than made up for the sluggishness of the prior quarters. With a slew of sales and more disposable savings, consumers rushed to the market with more aspiration to upgrade their smartphones than ever.

With a 9% YoY growth in smartphone shipments, India bagged the highest-ever shipment in a quarter, reaching over 53 million units in the third quarter of 2020.

Beginning with the Independence Day sales and ending at the Diwali and Dussehra sales till October, the market recovery has been tremendous.

Compared to the previous year, nearly all brands registered growth in sales in the third quarter. Due to the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, consumers’ choice of online retailers reflected in how even offline-centric brands like Vivo and Oppo scaled up on their online presence. The mid tier segment (₹10,000-₹20,000) recorded the highest growth.

04

Recommerce=1. 2020=0 When your smartphone saves the day, you know you’re in 2020. To match the needs of rising work from home demands, online classes, online grocery shopping and so on, users needed phones which were equipped and upgraded for multitasking.

The festive season lasting from late August to November speaks of the high volume of smartphone sales, giving Q3 53% hike in the number of smartphone sales. And what happened to the pre-owned phones? We’re about to find out.

Owing to obvious factors like being isolated from the physical world, taking enough precautions during the post-covid phase and the overall ease and smoothness of it, a considerable number of smartphone users opted to sell their phones via online mediums.

Cashify has recorded a YoY growth of over 40% in the mobile buyback segment in 2020.

Concentrated mostly towards the second half of the year, these rising numbers have simply helped unlock recommerce and its potential like never before.

When it comes to brands, Xiaomi stills tops the chart as the most sold smartphone brand by its users. Most smartphones sold by users were in the sub-₹10,000 bracket. Among models, the iPhone 7 was the hottest in buyback last year. Delhiites were seen to be the most avid buyback fans in the entire country. Take a look at the numbers below for a deeper dive.

05

BRAND-WISE SECOND HAND SMARTPHONE SALES

Others

10% 3%

26%

3% 5% 5% 6% 6%

20% 16%

TOP SELLING MODELS

Apple

Apple

iPhone 7

Apple

iPhone 6

5%

4%

Redmi

Redmi 4

2%

Redmi

iPhone 6s

3%

Apple

iPhone X

2%

Redmi

Note 4

Note 5 Pro

3%

OnePlus

OnePlus 6

1%

2%

Apple

iPhone 5s

1%

*Data derived from total buyback transactions on Cashify in 2020

06

SECOND HAND SMARTPHONE SALES BY USERS TOP SELLING CITIES 23%

13%

11%

7%

5%

New Delhi

Mumbai

Bengaluru

Hyderabad

Gurugram

5%

5%

4%

4%

23%

Pune

Chennai

Kolkata

Noida

Others

TOP UP-AND-COMING CITIES Faridabad

5%

Ghaziabad

2%

Lucknow

2%

Ahmedabad

2%

Surat

1%

Thane

1%

1%

Chandigarh

*Data derived from total buyback transactions on Cashify in 2020

07

TRUTH INDEX FROM TOP SELLING CITIES City-wise split between used smartphone sellers who mentioned their device condition accurately and those who didn’t

71%

71%

29%

29%

Delhi

Mumbai

70% 31%

30%

Bangalore

72%

74%

69%

26%

Hyderabad

69%

Gurgaon

71%

70%

28%

31%

30%

29%

Pune

Chennai

Kolkata

Noida

*Data derived from total buyback transactions on Cashify in 2020

08

The Reign of Refurbished Being the second largest smartphone market in the world, an average Indian upgrades their smartphone within 14-18 months of purchase. Needless to say, big brands carry more aspirational value than their sub-priced counterparts. And for those who are ready to upgrade to a costlier and more flaunt-worthy smartphone every year but unwilling to fork out major chunks of money, second-hand smartphones come to the rescue.

What if these consumers could get pre-owned smartphones at similar prices but with better functionality? Enter refurbished gadgets! Just like brand-new devices, refurbished gadgets had a field day through the second half of 2020. What started as affordable substitutes to their newer counterparts, became essential tools that helped numerous Indians carry out their day-to-day activities.

As the country went into a lockdown for months, the need to have a smartphone with internet connectivity and supportability of apps, became a necessity. Be it keeping up with jobs or education, digital became the new normal. From online classes to work from home, Indians couldn’t make do without a gadget in hand. And for those who couldn’t walk into a showroom and grab a new smartphone, refurbished devices came as a sigh of relief.

09

TOP 12 MODELS IN THE REFURBISHED SMARTPHONES SEGMENT, 2020

Redmi

Apple

Redmi

Apple

Note 5 Pro

iPhone 6

Note 4

iPhone 6s

21%

11%

11%

9%

Redmi

Apple

Redmi

Redmi

5A

iPhone 7

Note 5

Note 7 Pro

9%

8%

7%

5%

Redmi

POCO

F1

Redmi

Note 6 Pro

Redmi

6 Pro

5%

5%

5%

4%

Y2

10

India’s Favourite Brands: 2020 Apple Much has been talked about the hot and cold response of the Indian market to the Cupertino-based tech mogul Apple. While some can’t do without an Apple product by their side 24*7, there are some who reach for it with much strain on the purse-strings. The questions that remain are: Will Apple ever lower its price range? Will it still be aspirational and “premium” if it does? Will it ever start selling from its own outlet in India? We actually have the answer to the last one! For that and more, read on.

Like yesteryear’s iPhone XR, iPhone 11 carried the brand’s market share on its shoulders during Q1 of 2020.

Artwork

Artwork

IDC reports that Apple was able to bite off a whopping 67% market share in the premium segment in said quarter in India. Notable here is that the iPhone 11 accounted for about 68% of total shipments in the ₹50,000-₹75,000 segment in Q1, followed by Samsung and OnePlus.

Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, Q2 and Q3 saw some sluggish growth with 49% and 46% market share in the premium segment. Nevertheless, much to the brand’s relief, then came the festive season, Apple’s online outlet in September, 2020 and the stellar performers in the iPhone 12 series. All these factors led to the brand hogging a 100% YoY shipment growth in Q4. The brand doubled its Indian market share for the first time to 4% during the Oct-Dec quarter with 1.4Mn iPhones being shipped in said quarter.

A major chunk of Apple’s success in 2020 can be attributed to the plethora of exchange offers. In collaboration with Cashify, the OEM ran exchange programs on various models such as the all-new iPhone 12, iPhone 11, iPhone XR and iPhone SE.

11

During the last quarter, the brand saw an uplift of 40% on its buyback-based transactions.

Thanks to the buyback bonus worth as high as ₹6000, the Republic Day week 2021 raked in over 30% of the total buyback deals which were availed in the entire month of January.

Coming to iPhone users, about 71% iPhone users in India are male and 29% are female.

About 41% iPhone users are from the age group of 25 to 34 years. The second major age group among which iPhones are most popular are 18 to 24 year olds. About 18% iPhone users are based out of Delhi, the highest in India. Bengaluru and Mumbai occupy second and third places in terms of highest number of iPhone users.

TOP APPLE SMARTPHONE MODELS SOLD

BY CUSTOMERS

Apple

Apple

Apple

iPhone 7

iPhone 6

iPhone 6s

12%

8%

7%

Apple

Apple

iPhone X

iPhone 5s

4%

3%

12

OnePlus Since its inception, OnePlus has managed to keep the Indian market on its toes. Offbeat marketing strategies, exclusive invite-only launches, handsets that combine affordability and functionality and everything else about the brand has made a mark. In 2020 OnePlus had many other milestones awaiting. Starting the year at the premium and upper mid-tier market share of approximately 17% in Q1, OnePlus was one of the major players in those segments.

In Q2, the above ₹30,000 segment or premium segment had OnePlus at 29% market share. OnePlus 8 was the most shipped premium phone in said quarter with about 19% market share. It also helped the smartphone maker to slash the OnePlus 7T prices to ramp up sales in the country. By the end of the first half of 2020, OnePlus had a market share of 15%, after Apple and Samsung in the premium segment.

Driven mainly by the OnePlus Nord series, the OEM surpassed 10 lakh smartphone shipments in Q3. It was the first time the brand had crossed that shipment mark in a single quarter.

In Q4, OnePlus enjoyed 200% YoY growth, thanks to the huge sales numbers of the OnePlus 8T and Nord series.

Besides, the brand maintained its top rank in the ₹30,000-₹45,000 segment. The total

50k 40k 30k 20k 10k

shipments in the year for OnePlus was about 3 million units, another milestone for the OEM and first-time achievement.

13

The brand in India has about 86% male users and 14% female users. Almost half of its user base is in the 25 to 34 years age group. The 18 to 25 years age group comes next with a contribution of over 30% users. The highest number of OnePlus users in India are from Delhi, approximately 14%. The next two top cities are Bengaluru and Mumbai.

TOP ONEPLUS SMARTPHONE MODELS SOLD

BY CUSTOMERS

OnePlus

OnePlus

OnePlus

OnePlus 6

OnePlus 6T

OnePlus 5T

23%

15%

13%

OnePlus

OnePlus

OnePlus 5

OnePlus 3T

9%

9%

14

Oppo Despite the domination of Chinese smartphone makers in the Indian market, Oppo displayed lukewarm performance in 2020. Beginning the year with 12% market share in India in Q1, the BBK Electronics owned brand couldn’t stave off the declining sales in the months to come. While shipments grew by 83% in Q1 2020, the much-demanded Oppo A5 2020 and Oppo A5s couldn’t pull off similar numbers in the rest of the year.

As an offline-centric brand, Oppo faced challenges during the lockdown phase which made the brand start selling through online portals during 2020. During Q2 2020, the market share for the brand sank as low as 9% in the Indian market. Retaining the fifth position after the likes of Xiaomi, Samsung, Vivo and Realme, the Chinese OEM managed to bite off 10% market share in both Q3 and Q3 in India.

L

L L

While Canalys reports that Oppo was ahead of Realme in Q4 2020, Counterpoint suggests that the brand was behind its sub-brand even during the closing quarter of the year. Some popular models that raked in success for the brand during the year are Oppo A12, A53, F17 Pro, F17, Oppo Reno 3, Reno 4, A5s, A15 and A15s. It’s important to note that in spite of having a presence in both budget and premium categories, the brand could manage to grab only a small chunk of the Indian market in 2020.

15

Oppo’s major user base comes from the male demographic with over 80% of Oppo users being male. Although certain specs the brand boasts of do make it popular among females, its female user base in 2020 was just about 20%. Speaking of age, the maximum number of Oppo users come from the 18 to 25 year age group, which is about 36%. We also see about 33% of the brand usage coming from people within the age group of 25 to 34 years. Oppo, in India, has the highest user base from the city of Delhi, around 14%. Next on the list are Bengaluru and Mumbai.

TOP OPPO SMARTPHONE MODELS SOLD

BY CUSTOMERS

Oppo

Oppo

Oppo

Oppo F9 Pro

Oppo F1S

Oppo A57

8%

7%

6%

Oppo

Oppo

Oppo F3

Oppo A37F

5%

5%

16

Realme When it comes to Realme, no pandemic could kill its stride. With a massive YoY growth of 22%, Realme outshone other smartphone brands in India in 2020. Competitive pricing, models across entry and mid-range segments and aggressive marketing strategy were the key points behind the brand’s uplift. Opening the year at 14% market share in Q1, Realme managed to surpass its parent brand Oppo by the next quarter.

Launched in 2018, Realme has displayed immense growth in the Indian market. Although Q2 saw a slump in the brand’s market share at 11%, it quickly picked up momentum by Q3 with 15.2% market share. The online-centric strategy of Realme paid off as it closed the year with 13% market share, just behind Xiaomi, Samsung and Vivo. Word on the street is it might slip into the top 3 smartphone brands in India in the coming time.

Although its star performers last year were the Narzo series and the Realme C series, there are many models which helped pave the way up for the brand. Notable among them are Realme 6, 6 Pro and 6i. Not limiting its potential to smartphones, Realme has broadened its horizon into the Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIOT) category with smart TVs, smart watches, fitness bands etc. Offline sales for the brand are gradually picking up pace as well.

17

A tough competition for major players like Xiaomi and Samsung, Realme has almost 90% male users and 10% female users in India. Most of the users, about 53% to be precise, come from the age group of 18 to 25 years. The second major chunk of user base, about 28%, belongs to the 25 to 34 years age bracket. When it comes to Realme users across India, users from Delhi make for about 13% of the total number. Hyderabad and Bengaluru follow the national capital in second and third places respectively.

TOP REALME SMARTPHONE MODELS SOLD

BY CUSTOMERS

Realme

Realme

Realme

Realme 1

Realme 2

Realme 2 Pro

16%

11%

10%

Realme

Realme

Realme 3 Pro

Realme 5

10%

6%

18

Samsung As a smartphone maker, the Korean giant Samsung likes to cater to users across the board.

From budget handsets to flagship models, Samsung is known for its wide range of products.

During Q1 2020, Samsung managed to grab 16% of the Indian market. At third place after Xiaomi and Vivo, the brand saw major shipments for the Galaxy A and M Series in the first three months of the year.

Cut to Q2, Samsung rose one step up to second position with a market share of 26%, second only to Xiaomi. Facing the common effects of the COVID-19 lockdowns, the OEM faced challenges in sales. The anti-China sentiments due to the Indo-China tensions may have worked for the Korean brand, however. In Q3, the brand toppled Xiaomi from the first position in the Indian market with a market share of 24.2%.

Festive season has always been the hottest time for the smartphone market. A tide of offers from all brands and new launches make up for many of the factors. During Q4, Samsung slipped back to second place with a market share of 21%, again overtaken by Chinese OEM Xiaomi. The year ended with Samsung in the second rank with a full-year market share of 20%. Due to social distancing, the brand was also seen amping up offline channels to keep the sales going without interruption.

19

Some of the key performers for the brand have been smartphone models like the Galaxy M01 Core, A21s, A51, A20s, A30s and M30s. By the end of 2020, Samsung had an annual growth of 35%. Smartphones from the brand enjoy popularity mainly in the 25 to 34 years age group. 34% of its user base belongs to said demographic. About 82% users of Samsung smartphones in India are male. Samsung India enjoys the highest number of users from Delhi, about 14%. Next on the chart are Bengaluru and Hyderabad.

TOP SAMSUNG SMARTPHONE MODELS SOLD

BY CUSTOMERS

Samsung

Samsung

Samsung

Galaxy A50

Galaxy J7

Galaxy A30

6%

4%

3%

Samsung

Samsung

Galaxy S8

Galaxy S9

2%

2%

20

Vivo The year 2020 started with a quarter of glory for the Guangdong-based OEM. With a market share of 17%, Vivo beat Samsung and rose second rank in Q1 2020, after Xiaomi. The year brought new challenges for the brand with anti-China sentiments during the first half.

Owing to the COVID-19 lockdown, another disappointment awaited Vivo as its bankably sponsored tournament Indian Premier League got postponed. The year hasn’t been a walk in the park for Vivo and it was just the beginning.

As Q2 2020 drew to a close and updated numbers started doing the rounds, the market saw Vivo slipping to third place after having been overtaken by Samsung for said quarter.

The brand could grab 17% market share in Q2 which depleted to 16% in the next two quarters. With a total shipment of 26.9 million units, the OEM ended the year at the overall market share of 15% for the whole year.

A brand known for its wide-ranging segments, Vivo has managed to keep itself grounded both on the budget and premium price brackets. Majorly an offline brand, it also explored online avenues in 2020 to ramp up sales. The launch of sub-brand iQOO, Vivo is looking to make a stronghold in the premium and online market.

The first model iQOO 3, launched under said sub-brand, did enjoy a short-lived hype because of its aggressive pricing and robust catalogue of specs.

21

Vivo enjoys a large male user base of about 92% leaving only 8% female Vivo users. Some of the best performing models in 2020 were the Vivo V15, V15 Pro, V17, V17 pro, V19 and the Y series. The brand is equally popular with the 25 to 34 years and 18 to 24 years old smartphone users in India. Vivo enjoys about 27% of the total user base from each of these demographics. The highest number of Vivo users, about 14%, come from the national capital Delhi. Hyderabad and Pune are in the second and third places respectively.

TOP VIVO SMARTPHONE MODELS SOLD

BY CUSTOMERS

Vivo

Vivo

Vivo

Vivo V9

Vivo V15 Pro

Vivo V11 Pro

8%

6%

5%

Vivo

Vivo

Vivo Y95

Vivo S1

4%

4%

22

Xiaomi A year of ups and downs for the Chinese OEM ended on a high note, if not higher than the previous year. You would have to live under a rock to be oblivious about Xiaomi and its dominance over the Indian smartphone market. Always on top when it comes to mobile market share for the past several years, the brand welcomed the year in India with 30% market share in Q1 2020.

The attractiveness of models like Redmi Note 8 Pro raked in major chunks of the smartphone market in Xiaomi’s favourite up until Q2. With a market share of 29%, Xiaomi was still ruling the charts when anti-China sentiments started brewing in India. Cut to Q3, Samsung, which had been on the runners up position so far, rises above than Xiaomi with a market share of 24.2% and leaving the Chinese maker at 23.2%.

With the subsiding effects of the COVID-19 lockdown, aggressive festive offers and the launch of the stellar line-up Redmi 9 and Redmi Note 9 series, Xiaomi made its way back to the top with a YoY shipment growth of 13% in Q4 2020. Having established new partnerships with several Electronic Manufacturing Service (EMS) players, Xiaomi could also keep up with the soaring demands. Although the brand faced a deficit in YoY growth, it has ended up again on top with a market share of 26% for the calendar year of 2020.

23

Xiaomi enjoys a majorly male-dominated market with 85% percent male and 15% female users in India. Most of the Xiaomi user base in India comes from the 18 to 24 years age group, surpassing the 25 to 34 years bracket. The former age group has about 41% user contribution to the brand while the latter is at 31%. Delhi contributes over 14% users into the total Xiaomi user base in India, which is followed by Bengaluru and Hyderabad.

TOP XIAOMI SMARTPHONE MODELS SOLD

BY CUSTOMERS

Xiaomi

Xiaomi

Xiaomi

Redmi Note 4

Redmi Note 5

Redmi 4

5%

4%

3%

Xiaomi

Xiaomi

Redmi Note 3

Mi A1

2%

2%

24

For The Love Of Brick & Mortar The nationwide lockdowns might have sent consumers online but the inclination to touch and feel items before purchase brings us to this segment. As the government eased up the restrictions on offline shops in May 2020, consumers started returning to the brick and mortar. Let’s recount the journey Cashify had in the offline segment in the year 2020.

16 full fledged Cashify Stores were opened across various parts of India through the year, reaching a total of 25 stores. While there was a downsizing of pop-up stores, these new outlets opened up avenues for smartphone users to simply walk in and get all smartphone solutions. Offering buyback, refurbished devices, instant mobile repair and mobile accessories, these stores today stand strong with a manpower of 161 executives.

Spread across all major Indian cities, Cashify Stores aim at providing best in class

7,598

smartphone care. Taking the store concept a notch higher, 5 Cashify Franchise Stores were also initiated. From cities like Bangalore and Ghaziabad to Kolar, Purulia Davangere, these stores work on a partnership basis while ensuring the premium quality in all services.

57

25

CASHIFY STORES ARE HERE East North South

Ghaziabad

West

Noida 1

Mohali

1

Kanpur 2 Patna 2

16 New Delhi 3

1

Gurgaon 2

Bhagalpur 1

Faridabad

Purulia 1 3 1

Kolkata 4

Thane

Ranchi 2

Palghar 9 Mumbai 2

Pune

Kolar 1

Davangere

1

Chennai 3 Bangalore 10

With a goal of 150 outlets, Cashify plans to reach various corners of the country by the end of the year 2021. While the services are available online, these stores aim to bring relief and satisfaction to the buyers who prefer their shopping at stores rather than sites.

26

The Boon & Bane of Virtual Education

The onset of COVID-19 related lockdowns brought about new ways for everything. Work, shopping, business; everything centred around the digital. Similarly, classrooms moved online as well. Zoom, Microsoft teams, Google classrooms and even WhatsApp became a medium of studies. Some kids, however, were not so lucky. Owing to a major digital divide, Indian students, mostly from the lower socio-economic strata, were deprived of online education.

Ever since the classes moved online, the true picture of India’s digital scenario has come unveiled. While touted as one of the fastest growing countries in technology, the reality was much more unfortunate. India is home to the second largest population of mobile phone users and internet user base with over 630 million subscribers. So why the massive gap when it comes to children attending their online classes.

27

Lack of electricity and patchy internet connection are issues that come second when nearly 27% school students in India have no access to a mobile phone or laptop for studies. With educational institutes shutting down from md-March, 2020, many students from the underprivileged sections of the society found it extremely difficult to keep up with their studies. Parents who were unable to afford proper gadgets that support internet connectivity and apps faced massive challenges to enable their children for the same.

Many corporations stepped up to contribute towards the need of the hour. In collaboration with various not-for-profit organizations, Cashify took the onus to minimize the digital divide as much as possible. Smartphones worth ₹1,24,000 were delivered to students in need with the help of organizations like Saajha, Project Dor, TRRAIN Foundation and Swami Sivananda Memorial Institute (SSMI) among many others.

Thanks to the lockdown, we got to witness some already established, and some up and coming good samaritans amidst us. Sumair and Kaveri, students of 10th and 9th standards respectively, sought Cashify out for a commendable collaboration. As a part of Cashify’s Donate For Education campaign, these budding superstars ran a drive to donate smartphones to lesser privileged school-goers in and around their city.

As classes gradually resume in classrooms, online education becomes a crucial part of the curriculum. Education boards are making efforts to make digital learning mainstream. Various schools and NGOs are relentlessly looking for collaborations through which they can source smartphones and other gadgets for students from the weaker sections of society

28

Phone-atics Interesting trends & user behaviour in the world of smartphones

People sold their second hand phones at the average price of

₹4,217

in the year

2020

25 to 35 years olds would rather sell their old phones online

Smartphones around the age of 3 years got sold the most by users

Gender-split of everyone who sold their used phones 100%

Male

Female

80%

20% 0%

29

Phone-atics

A seller usually decides within the

first 15 minutes if a buyback deal is good enough for their old phone

Samsung Galaxy S Series and Note Series were the fastest to lose their resale value iPhones lost their resale value the slowest

Nearly 62% smartphone issues are screen-related, battery issues come next with about 21%

The number of smartphone repairs is the highest in Delhi which is over 35% in the entire country

Battery, charging jack and screen-related issues are the most recurring with iPhones

30

Yearly Roundup Although the start of 2020 made things bleak for industries around the world, the Indian smartphone market by the end of the year was standing strong. Despite the smartphone market exiting 2020 at a decline of 1.7% with the shipment of 150 million units, the coming year seems promising. New work and education mandates make it crucial for individuals to own gadgets equipped enough to meet those needs.

Some notable developments have been the comeback of Indian brands which were struggling to make a mark due to their Chinese competitions. For instance, Lava, the indigenous brand aims to own at least 5% of the smartphone market in 2021. The local OEM has re-entered the market with a bang with its customizable range of smartphones called “MyZ”. Similarly, Karbon is looking to launch new smartphones in the first quarter of 2021.

Thanks to Government of India’s Vocal for Local campaign, Micromax, a brand which was almost obliterated, made a comeback with its sub-brand “In”. Launching two smartphone series In 1b and In Note 1, Micromax plans to make the most of state-sanctioned benefits to reach where it once was before the likes of Xiaomi almost made it obsolete.

Competitive pricing, youth-focused products and online-oriented sales are in sight of these homegrown brands for the time to come.

When it comes to the already established smartphone brands, the competition seems to get tougher as we step into another year. 2020, and the unique challenges it posed, had a clear impact of the prices of the top brands in India. Some brands displayed a steep depreciation of smartphone prices through the year. Find out more about the price trend from major OEMS below.

Price Depreciation Trends For Top Selling Models in 2020 -0 -5

-9.5%

-5.5%

-6.5%

-10 -15

-18%

-20

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Think Smartphone. Think Cashify.

From buying to maintaining it to selling your smartphone, Cashify is now your go-to partner.

BUY

SELL

REPAIR

ACCESSORIZE