Guangdong Mobile Rents Outlets to Handset Retailers
China Business, 10/20/08
Guangdong Mobile is testing a plan to outsource operation of its 'Communication 100' stores to bidders. On October 16, the first round of trial bidding was completed and according to retailer sources, mobile phone retailers D.Phone, Tianying, and Junhe between them won the operating rights to 500 stores.
Pang Hong, deputy GM of D.Phone's operator services division, said that under the terms of this round of bidding, Guangdong Mobile will outsource store services to the winning bidders, who will pay Guangdong Mobile for the use of their stores, store costs, and employee wages.
Pang also revealed that D.Phone had won the rights to 164 stores, out of which it had already begun trial operations in 37. The company is now planning to begin operating 120 stores in 14 cities including Heyuan and Huizhou. During September, one of its Communication 100 stores measuring nearly 100 sqm in size sold 2,000 handsets, a sales volume equivalent to what D.Phone would normally see from a 500 sqm mobile mall.
Keywords: Tianying Junhe D.Phone Guangdong Mobile Heyuan mobile phone Pang Hong sales sales volume wireless 0941.HK China Mobile CHL retail