Ambrane India creating a niche in technology

A first-generation entrepreneur, Ashok Rajpal is the driving force behind the brand 'Ambrane India', which has evolved into one of India's most trusted and top trending Power Bank Brands. With a warm approach and a go-getter attitude, he has strengthened the culture of innovation at 'Ambrane', exploring new markets and extending the brands product portfolio and global reach. He is credited with growing the business and consistently achieving high growth over the past three years. Even with a minimum investment of Rs. 10 lakhs, 'Ambrane' is today the No.1 market leader in Power Banks and IT peripherals. Ashok talks about experimenting and innovating technology for his craze for travel-friendly gadgets has no end.

About 'Ambrane', Ashok Rajpal says, "It is an indigenous electronics brand that was established in 2012 with a vision to offer smart electronic gadgets. We started our journey with Powerbanks, which, with time, has become the brand's identity and signature product. We were the first in India to manufacture power banks supporting the 'Make in India' movement. Over the years, we have grown tremendously, now having a strong, nationwide presence with multiple products in our portfolio, including Mobile accessories, Audio, Personal care & Grooming, and other smart gadgets. We have established ourselves as being one of the top Indian brands on eCommerce sites like Amazon & Flipkart. We are also available at retail chain stores like Croma, Sangeeta, Go Mobile, Walmart, More Retail, Reliance Retail, Spencers, Udaan, and others. Today, we have over 20 million happy customers in India."

The company was set up with the underlined mission to innovate and build smart electronic gadgets as per the audience's needs. It began as a power bank brand and quickly became prominent in the market. Seeing the market's traction and prospects, they began broadening and increasing their product line by providing Audio (Neckband, Headphones, TWS), Charging Solutions (Wall Charger, Car Charger), Personal Care &; Wearables (Smartwatch). "We are devoted to providing the finest experience to consumers in an ever-changing industry by emphasizing innovation and technological improvement. 'Ambrane' is now linked with quality and innovation at the most affordable pricing points. We are proud to be a successful example of 'Make in India' as we are a fully homegrown brand. We have a massive manufacturing capacity in Haryana with eight production lines and 350 workers focused on keeping India's Make in India vision alive. We are not just limited to manufacturing power banks and mobile accessories; 'Ambrane' has started manufacturing audio products and other categories in India. We aim to break the stereotypical vision about Indian brands by building the best technology & quality at the most prudent price points. Very recently, we have also roped in cricketer Ravindra Jadeja and popular celebrity Disha Patani as our brand ambassadors," shares Ashok Rajpal.

'Ambrane' has gradually begun to build out a niche in the Wearable and Audio segments, and the response has been tremendously positive. Ashok says, "Being the first product from 'Ambrane', power banks play a crucial role in gaining a great share in the Indian market with more than 25% market share. Our expansion to the wearables line with the release of our Wise series smartwatch, the first of two smartwatches we have offered, has had a tremendous response from customers. We have created a share of around 4% in the Indian market for Audio segments and wearables, and we feel exhilarated by this achievement. The wide range of smartwatches resonates with the needs of today's millennials – cutting-edge, easy to navigate, super stylish, and yet durable pieces that are feature-rich and value for money." Despite the aftermath of the pandemic and its wrath, 'Ambrane' has performed fairly well in 2021. They sold more than 20 lakh units in 2021, spread across all categories of products. He says, "Our Year-on-year growth has been a promising 20%, and both power banks and Audio have shown massive sales. Our Power Banks and Wearables category has shown promising growth in 2021."

"We believe in establishing our presence both online and offline. 'Ambrane' is already available in leading retail stores in India like Croma, Walmart, More Retail, Reliance Digital, etc. We have solid GT and MT teams on board and have dedicated distributors pan India who work diligently to make the brand reach new heights. We are also working on expanding our service centres across India to ensure customer satisfaction. We aim to bring smiles and a positive experience to all our customers," shares Ashok.

Is the Indian market still price or quality sensitive? "This is debatable. Every product has its niche audience, depending on the price at which it is offered. For most of our product categories, this majorly depends on the geographical territory we are marketing it in. In our experience, we have seen that tier-one cities are more quality-sensitive, whereas tier-two and three cities are more price-driven. So, we design and position our products considering both these factors in mind," he adds.

Ashok believes that the recent Chinese shutdown, as well as the Russia-Ukraine situation, has had an impact on the scarcity of semiconductor chips. He says, "Because India relies on China for semiconductors and Russia is one of the world's main producers of rare metals used in semiconductor manufacturing, this, together with the sector's current COVID-related semiconductor shortage, has had a detrimental impact. As a result, many businesses have seen lesser production, longer delivery times, fewer discounts, and higher expenses. This has had an impact not just on Indian manufacturing but has also aggravated global circumstances. The only way for the sector to prevent a repeat crisis is for India to become self-sufficient in raw materials, putting it on the path to self-sufficiency and reducing imports."

While advising upcoming entrepreneurs: "I would say this time, this era is perfect for entrepreneurs as there are new opportunities, new technologies, and not to forget social media. Despite the cut-throat competition, it is important to recognize that this is a golden age that has modern solutions to tackle most of the challenges faced today. One needs to be persistent in their efforts and passionate enough to embark on the journey and take on the challenges head-on to be successful as an entrepreneur."

His mission is to become India's best homegrown Power bank Brand and to cater to all modern-day requirements of our consumers with its range of value-for-money lifestyle consumer electronics. "We envision reaching 50 million customers and increasing our employees by two times by the next financial year," he concludes.