Sony remains optimistic about Brazil
Sony has reiterated its confidence in Brazil at the launch of its product range for 2017 for the local market in São Paulo today.
With consumer items ranging from OLED 4k televisions to professional cameras, audio equipment and accessories, the firm is looking to reach customers seeking better quality products - and don't mind the higher price tag.
Sony's strategy in Brazil is to target well-off Brazilians who can buy items such as its 100-inch smart TV - which will retail for 350,000 reais ($106,760) - and that those buying patterns will permeate across other customer segments, according to Sony Brazil's president Hiroki Chino.
"Before the crisis, people were more focused on price and conventional technology - they didn't care so much about quality. But purchasing behavior and preferences have changed," the executive told ZDNet.
"Even in the middle of a crisis, we noticed that people's desire for much better quality equipment has increased. Now, it is obvious that consumers want connected devices, larger screens, higher specs," he added.
The Sony executive commented that one of the key objectives for his team in Brazil over the coming year will be to woo customers with the new product range and convince them the items are worth the cost.
"We will do a lot of evangelism about what the value that we can bring to customers and how we can enrich their experiences," Chino said.
"Our business plan for the coming months is to attain solid growth. Before the launch today we had discussions with some of our key partners and we are very optimistic," he added.
According to the executive, the market became very "sluggish" after the World Cup of 2014 and the political and economic instability that followed was not helpful.
However, even during uncertain times, the company continued to make the "necessary investment" to ensure the Brazilian operation could keep focusing on growth.
"We didn't sleep [during the downturn] and even with the instability we grew a lot in Brazil. Now that the crisis will be over, we are fully prepared," Chino pointed out.
"I have seen a couple of recent occasions when the [Brazilian currency] real depreciated a lot, then things normalized. What I have been communicating [to the global leadership] is that some kind of fluctuation will happen, but it will stabilize," he added.
"Nobody can say what will happen for sure, but Brazil will recover."