Twelve years after entering India with smartphones, Xiaomi is preparing to expand its presence in the country by bringing its smart home brand, Mijia, to Indian consumers. The company will initially launch air purifiers, with plans to gradually introduce a wider range of connected home appliances in the future.
In an exclusive interaction with India Today Tech, Xiaomi India Chief Operating Officer Sudhin Mathur said the launch marks the next phase of the company's long-term strategy in India.
Recalling Xiaomi's journey, Mathur noted that the company has spent over a decade building a strong presence in the country through smartphones, tablets, wearables, smart TVs and AIoT products.
"We completed 12 years in India this July. We have established a very strong base and today Xiaomi is a household name across the country," he said.
Mijia to expand Xiaomi's smart home ecosystem
According to Mathur, Xiaomi now wants to replicate in India the connected ecosystem it has already built in China.
After strengthening the "Human" pillar through consumer electronics, the company is now focusing on the "Home" pillar of its Human × Car × Home strategy by introducing internet-connected household appliances.
Initially, Mijia will debut in India with air purifiers, a category where Xiaomi already has experience. However, the brand's international portfolio spans numerous product categories, including refrigerators, washing machines and other smart home devices, many of which could eventually make their way to India.
All Mijia products will integrate with Xiaomi's connected ecosystem, allowing users to control them through smartphones and other smart devices.
Mathur said the objective is to make everyday household tasks more convenient through automation.
He cited examples such as scheduling lights to switch on and off automatically or programming a robotic vacuum cleaner to begin cleaning at a fixed time every day.
Affordable smart home technology
Mathur stressed that affordability would remain central to Xiaomi's strategy, just as it has been for its smartphone business.
"The value aspect is the core of Xiaomi. We have always believed technology should be accessible to everyone," he said.
He added that the company wants to make smart home technology available at prices that appeal to a wider consumer base rather than remaining a premium offering.
Ready to compete in home appliances
The home appliance market presents a different challenge from smartphones, with established brands such as Samsung and LG enjoying extensive service and distribution networks.
However, Mathur believes Xiaomi has already built the infrastructure required to compete.
He pointed out that the company has been selling televisions in India for several years and currently operates more than 1,300 service centres covering over 19,300 pin codes nationwide.
According to him, Xiaomi's existing logistics and after-sales network provides a solid foundation for expanding into larger home appliances under the Mijia brand.
For now, however, the company is taking a cautious approach by entering the market with air purifiers before expanding into additional product categories.
Premium smartphones remain a priority
Beyond smart home products, Xiaomi also continues to focus on its smartphone business despite rising component costs affecting the entire industry.
Mathur acknowledged that increasing prices of memory, storage and semiconductor components have pushed up the cost of smartphones, tablets and laptops across brands.
He said Xiaomi has also been forced to raise prices and did not rule out further increases if component costs remain elevated.
"It's an industry-wide issue. Whether it's smartphones or PCs, wherever memory is used, everyone is being impacted," he said.
While future pricing remains uncertain, he added that Xiaomi aims to remain as resilient as possible and avoid leading price hikes whenever feasible.
Despite these challenges, Mathur confirmed that Xiaomi is preparing to launch more premium smartphones in India over the coming months.
"There are interesting things you can expect from Xiaomi in the coming months, including on the smartphone side. We will launch more premium products, and I believe people will be pleasantly surprised," he said.
