HCL Infosystems to rebrand retail outlets

As part of its marketing initiative ‘HCL Mobile Excitement (ME)’, hardware and systems integrator firm HCL Infosystems is rebranding its retail outlets and its store chain ‘Digilife’ which retails digital lifestyle products.

The multi-category stores, which offer a range of ICT products including laptops, mobiles, cameras, MP3 payers and gaming consoles, would be called ‘ME-Zones’ and the computing stores which sell desktops, laptops and netbooks would be branded as ‘ME-Xclusives’. HCL has 65 Digilife stores in the country.

The company will invest up to Rs 50 crore in two-three years for rebranding its personal computers, comprising laptops and netbooks, besides eyeing a 20 per cent market share in the category — up from 7 per cent at present. The investments will be in marketing, rebranding and market creation exercises across verticals. “Both these categories of stores will be rebranded in stages, which should be over November-end. All stores would be branded with the new design,” HCL Infosystems EVP George Paul said.

HCL plans to expand the ME Zones and ME Xclusive stores and retail chains by the middle of 2010, having a pan-India presence across Tier-I and -II towns with a mix of company-owned and franchisee stores.

HCL will also sell its laptops and netbooks under the ‘ME’ brand replacing the earlier ‘LeapTop’ series of portable products besides introducing seven new models in a price range of Rs 19,000-65,000. In addition, it would introduce more feature-rich models to compete in the Indian market.