Dell looks to Asia for partnership opportunities

US-based computer maker Dell will make a play for Asia's retail opportunity with the help of more partners, but maintains it is not straying from its direct business model.

Last month, Dell announced its partnership with China's largest consumer electronics retailer Gome to reach out to shoppers visiting the Chinese retail outlets across the country.

When contacted by ZDNet.co.uk's sister site, ZDNet Asia, a spokesperson from Dell Asia confirmed that the company plans to pursue partnerships, like the recent alliance in China, in other parts of Asia, but declined to give further details.

The PC maker has also announced partnerships with Bic Camera in Japan, Carphone Warehouse in the UK and Wal-Mart in the US. It has also opened its first retail store in Russia.

The expansion of Dell's retail strategy in Asia is "ongoing", the spokesperson said, adding that it will be a two-pronged approach for now. The PC maker will partner retailers to tap their "existing infrastructure", or distribution channels, and set up a retail showcase for potential computer buyers to check out Dell products and make enquiries.

In Asia, Dell has already "customer experience" centres to let potential buyers touch and feel its products. In Singapore, for instance, Dell has a small retail showcase in a mall, which operates like a "kiosk" where interested buyers can make enquiries and get help with placing orders. Similar outlets can be found in China and Hong Kong.

Although this retail strategy presents new ways for the computer maker to reach out to potential customers, the direct sales model is still the mainstay of Dell's business, the spokesperson said.

The PC maker broke away from a 23-year tradition of selling computers to consumers via a direct sales model when it announced its retail strategy in July, in an attempt to reach more customers worldwide.

Dell is currently the world's second-largest PC maker.