How much share can Canon clinch in Nigerian market?

In the thick of economic recession in late 2016, Canon, Japanese multinational corporation which manufactures imaging and printing products formally established office in Nigeria as a hub for the West African market. It is not clear why it chose that period to enter Nigerian market; but according to an analyst, Canon entry into Nigeria was long overdue.

One of the brand’s strategies of establishing an office in Nigeria is to strengthen its regional operation and presence in Nigeria, a move, perhaps which should have taken place long time ago with the understanding that Nigeria has a strong economy and especially to further entrench Canon brand in Nigeria. Canon brand is popular among Nigerians.

Having delayed to establish office in Nigeria, it is therefore believed that its entry during economic difficulty in Nigeria is to prove a point to the country that the brand has trust in the Nigerian economy.

But the question is why did Canon delay for such a long time to establish an office in Nigeria even when the brand owners acknowledged that Nigeria’s economy is hard to ignore. “Nigeria is a country with limitless opportunities, resources and potentials where creativity is a craft breathing in the veins of its people through music, art and imagery”, says Somesh Adukia, Canon’s Sales and Marketing Director B2C.

With the understanding now that Nigeria has a resilient economy and according to stakeholders recession would not last in the bourgeoning Nigerian economy, Canon is struggling for more market share in the competitive imaging and printing products sector where there are other giants such as HP, Konica Minolta, Samsung, Sony, Xerox and other low end products.

It is establishing office when other multinational competitors have really gained strong foothold.

Canon would have hitherto probably deepened its West African market penetration with its attendant huge benefits if it had established office in Nigeria before now. However it still believes that the recent establishment of office in Nigeria will provide it the opportunity to gain further in-depth reach across Africa and better understand the changing market dynamics and customer demand.

Over the years, Canon has used vendors to service Nigerian market and part of its strategy of having an office in Nigeria is, in analysts estimation, to enhance its business in the African continent and strengthen its in-country presence and focus.

Presently it is adopting strategies to deepen its market penetration. Recently, it unveiled a partnership between Canon Central and North Africa (CCNA) and three service providers – Ensure services, Technology Distribution and BSS Kontakt.

Somesh Adukia said that  through the three authorized service partners, Canon will offer total after-sales product repair services in eight locations across Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt while providing support and unrivalled customer experience for Nigeria’s constantly growing creative industry.

“Going by our customer feedback over time, we have realized that Nigerian customers consider after sales service and technical support – to be major factors guiding their choice of product brands. We have therefore invested in product repair facilities with sophisticated tools to provide our customers with nothing less than world-class service not only to satisfy our customer needs but also to buttress our service first philosophy. We are also working towards establishing more collection points for our customers to drop their units for servicing, in case they are located far away from the service locations.”

With penetration moves by Canon, BusinessDay gathered that other imaging solution providers are also fortifying their strategies to remain strong and not lose their shares in the competitive market.

As competition gets fierce, quality, after sales service and price would be the distinguishing factors. Many of the imaging and printing brands are presenting these factors as niches. Some time ago, the managing director of Skysaat Technologies, Izzat Debs, the representative of Konica Minolta  said  that “Konica Minolta is not just the market leader in terms of market size, but also in technological innovation. Buyers of these machines can be rest assured of the Konica Minolta seal of quality which delivers stress-free digital printing solutions through the application of cutting-edge technology. They are also assured of adequate stocks of spare parts and consumables, as well as excellent after-sales service provided by our well-trained and certified team of technicians”, he added.

With about 180 million population and thriving film industry, Nigeria, no doubt has “limitless opportunities, resources and potentials where creativity is a craft breathing in the veins of its people through music, art and imagery”.

The market is watching how competition reacts to Canon steady moves to take more percentage of the market share.

 

Daniel Obi

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