Haier, the mainland's leading electric appliance manufacturer, plans to boost its presence in high-end market in Hong Kong following its initial success in low-end market, an executive said.

Speaking to China Daily, Haier International director Zhang Tieyan said the company would beef up its sale services and increase expenditure in promotion to attract extravagant buyers.

Haier, which has entered Hong Kong market almost three years ago, has adopted a step-by-step approach to increase its presence in the market, Zhang told China Daily.

The company's first batches of products were meant for mass household's demands. The products were competitively priced, durable and they were widely accepted.

The strategy was a big success which substantially bolstered the company's popularity over the past years, Zhang said.

According to a report of GFK, Haier 32-inches LCD television sets and front-load washing machines notched up second and third in terms of sales volumes respectively in 2005 and 2006.

"We are satisfied with the performance so far. More and more Hong Kong people know what Haier is," Zhang told China Daily.

Haier set up its first own-brand outlet in Tsuen Wan last year, amid the company's endeavors to ally with Hong Kong's electric retail chain stores.

"We negotiated with them to get some spaces in their outlets for displaying Haier products. The penetration rate maintains in good progress and now we are in discussion with one of the leading retail chain runners Fortress," said Zhang.

With years of sales experiences in Asian markets such as South Korea and Japan, Zhang said Hong Kong is a relatively open market for newcomers.

"South Korean consumers are quite patriotic about their country's brands. It is more difficult for us to get in," Zhang added.

(HK Edition 08/01/2007 page6)