Cannon India targets turnover of Rs 270 crore for 2004

Cannon India Private Limited, the 100 per cent subsidiary of global image technology major Canon Singapore Pte, hopes to achieve a turnover of Rs 270 crore for the current calendar year. In 2003, the company recorded a turnover of Rs 230 crore.

Alok Bharadwaj, director and general manager (consumer imaging and information division and volume products) of Canon India Private Limited, said that one of the main drivers of the company's growth would be the digital camera business.

Bharadwaj, who was in the city to inaugurate the first Digi Click Zone "� a photo retail stores of the company, said: "At present, the digital camera industry is estimated to be at Rs 100 crore. By 2007, it is expected to be a Rs 600-crore industry and Canon aims to capture a 30 per cent share of this market."

According to him, the current market size of the digital cameras is around two lakh units per year and is growing at around 10 per cent every month. Out of the Rs 230 crore earned last year, the contribution of digital camera segment was only one per cent or around Rs 2.5 crore.

"This year we expect to get around four per cent or Rs 10 crore from this division," he added. According to Bharadwaj, the company's growth in the coming years would be fuelled by demand from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and the small office home office (Soho) segments.

The company expects to open 25 Digi Click centres by the end of the current calendar year. Canon has earmarked a marketing budget of Rs 4 crore to promote the new range of digicam products. This includes advertising, retail initiatives, promotions and roadshows, Bharadwaj said.

The company also plans to increase the dealer network to 500 from the present 350 by the end of 2004. The company has also launched a new range of digital cameras called the A400 series. "The A400 is available in four colours and is priced at Rs 12,995," he said.