14 DAY TRIAL // New research from Counterpoint Research reveals that Samsung was the leading phone maker in Europe in 2021, as the South Korean company ended the year with a 32 percent market share.
Apple was unsurprisingly the runner-up with a 26 percent market share but more notably in the case of the iPhone maker is a major growth of no less than 25 percent.
Xiaomi was third with 20 percent and a 50 percent increase, while OPPO’s growth reached no more no less than 94 percent to secure a market share of 8 percent.
Counterpoint says the market as a whole recovered by 8 percent, but on the other hand, this is only a small step towards the pre-pandemic levels.
Massive increases following Huawei’s decline
Most of these impressive increases in market share took place following the collapse of Huawei’s phone business. The company now has a market share of less than 1 percent in Europe, therefore dropping from 4th place to the 8th in just one year.
“Riding the wave of the launch of its first 5G iPhone, Apple started the year on a high with a market leading 34% share. In February, Samsung launched its Galaxy S21 series which, at least initially, sold well, helping Samsung’s sales grow by 24% compared to January and pushing it to the top spot in February 2021. Samsung then suffered significant supply issues starting in May due to COVID-19 related factory shutdowns in Vietnam, which opened the door for Xiaomi to become number one in Europe for the first time, in June 2021 (helped by good growth in Russia, Spain and Italy),” Counterpoint notes.
Apple is expected to benefit from a so-called mid-season boost once the iPhone SE is announced in the spring, while Samsung will bet big on the Galaxy S22, whose unveiling will take place later this month.