14 DAY TRIAL // Xiaomi recently unveiled its Mi 6 flagship in China and the company is also working on a Plus variant with a larger display and more RAM capacity, while keeping the dual-camera setup on the back. Sadly, the two smartphones won’t arrive to the US.
In an interview with Engadget, Xiaomi’s Global VP Wang Xiang admitted that the US isn’t a priority market for the Chinese maker, as the company continues to focus on the 30 regions in which it already operates. Xiaomi says that it intends to continue focusing on developing mass markets, and simply can’t afford to expand to more “elite” and “premium” markets like the US or Western Europe.
Xiaomi’s aim is a mass market and massive impact, compared to “a premium, elite thing.” The Chinese smartphone maker intends to bring innovation for everyone and isn’t hurrying to serve the developed markets.
Xiaomi smartphones aren’t officially sold in the US
In addition to that, Xiaomi must also take US carriers into consideration, when analyzing an entry into the US market. Some companies like OnePlus penetrated the US market by selling their smartphones directly to consumers, but Xiaomi’s official says that such a move isn't prudent considering that the relationship with US carriers could become important later on.
At some point in time, Xiaomi will wish to fully expand to the US and Western Europe market, but it’s difficult to say when that will actually happen. For such a move, Xiaomi will have to negotiate carrier distribution and set up full customer service, something that the company isn’t willing to do, at least in the near future.
Those who wish to purchase Xiaomi smartphones would have to access third-party sellers as Xiaomi doesn’t offer its smartphones through official channels in the US. Xiaomi’s official Wang stated in this regard that “even though we don’t sell [in the US or Western Europe], we feel very sorry for not serving them well.”