Electronica: Turkey – home of cheap TVs

Turkey is emerging as a major manufacturing centre for lower cost television sets and component suppliers at Electronica this week have recognised the fact and are banging on their door for business.

“Many major brands including the Japanese firms, for the first time, are badging up TVs manufactured in Turkey for the rental market,” said John Graham, sales director at Welwyn Components.

Some estimates suggest that as many as 30,000 sets a month are being produced in Turkey, making it one of the larger centres for low cost products. Typically these lower cost products have been manufactured in Poland and the Czech Republic, along with south east Asia.

“For us this is an important new market opportunity in Turkey,” said Graham.

Both TT Electronics and fellow UK-based supplier Anglia are working actively at building relationships in Munich this week with local manufacturers in Eastern Europe.

Graham said it is important for suppliers to build relationships with the local suppliers in markets such as Turkey and Eastern Europe. “Working with the major CEMs is fine, but we need to develop closer relationships with local firms in order to win this important new business,” said Graham.

Anglia’s marketing director Lee Nye agrees: “This is all about building relationships with the CEMs. Raising our profile.”

Anglia, which in September ended its own aspirations to be a manufacturer and focus on supplying components instead, is now targeting a wider range of small and medium-sized manufacturing customers in the UK but also across Europe. “We are now in a stronger position to target second and third tier manufacturers,” said Nye.