Hisense Expands in India with Appliances, AC Manufacturing and Retail Push

Chinese electronics major Hisense is making a deeper push into the Indian market by entering new product categories and expanding its manufacturing and retail presence. After establishing itself with televisions and air conditioners, Hisense will now launch washing machines in India this month and plans to introduce kitchen appliances like microwaves next year. This marks a significant expansion of its product portfolio in the country.

The company is beginning its appliances journey with two top-load washing machine models and will gradually enter the small kitchen appliances segment. While Hisense is strong in the global refrigerator business, it is yet to finalize plans for that segment in India due to the high capital investment required.

This expansion comes at a time when Panasonic is exiting the refrigerator and washing machine business in India, and several companies, including OnePlus and Realme, have withdrawn from the TV segment. Hisense sees this as an opportunity to grow, especially as India’s middle-income group continues to expand. CEO Pankaj Rana believes that the brand’s global supply chain and cost competitiveness position it well in India’s price-sensitive market.

Currently, over 80% of Hisense’s revenue in India comes from TVs, with the rest from ACs. The company is aiming for a 60:40 revenue ratio between TVs and ACs by next year and expects 10% of revenue to come from appliances by 2026. Hisense’s TVs are manufactured through partners like Dixon and Bhagwati, but it is exploring in-house production.

The company is also investing ₹250 crore in a new manufacturing facility in Sri City, Andhra Pradesh, in partnership with Epack Durables. This facility, which will produce air conditioners and washing machines, is expected to be operational by November or December 2025. Initially catering to the domestic market, the factory may later explore exports and has an expandable capacity of up to one million units.

Hisense is focusing on offline expansion, partnering with large-format retailers and regional distributors. The East and South India markets are already active, with plans to strengthen its presence in the West and North. The company is also scaling up its India headquarters in Noida and hiring across departments to support its growth.

Between its Hisense and Toshiba brands, the company currently sells over 50 TV models in India, following a “different model, different channel” strategy. With premiumisation and large-screen adoption as key pillars, Hisense aims to lead in 100-inch+ TV sales and strengthen its brand presence across categories.

Source: Moneycontrol