The Lenovo-­Motorola India combine has applied for single-­brand retail licence to open company­- owned showrooms.

This comes on the heels of the Chinese company’s mobile sales in India crossing the US$1 ­billion mark.
Lenovo India’s director Sudhin Mathur says the turnover from mobile-phone sales in the year ended March 31 stood at $1.3 billion, nearly double the $700 ­million of the previous year.

“Sales have been growing at a healthy pace and we expect to maintain a strong momentum.”

According to industry tracker IDC, the Lenovo­-Motorola combine sold about 10 million units last year, accounting for a nearly 10 per cent share of the market.

Mathur says smartphone industry sales in India are expected to grow by 30 per cent this
year.

The company’s units for India are being contract ­manufactured by Flextronics at Sriperumbudur. Lenovo is also looking at having its own phone plant in India.

Mathur says eight or ­nine new models will be introduced in India over the coming months as the company beefs up its portfolio ahead of the festive season.

Other companies to have applied for the single-­brand retail licence include Apple and Chinese company LeEco.