Ujjwal Sarin, Founder, Nu Republic
The year 2022 was one a landmark year for Nu Republic. We expanded our reach and were made available across 10,000+ points of sales. The brand expanded to many new large format retail chains like Chennai mobile, Sangeetha mobile, James &Co, SS Communication, Aadishwar, amongst others. We also expanded our reach in General Distribution throughout the year. We also have been at the forefront of innovation, with some of our standout innovations being as follows:
- Rouser Wireless: the first wireless neckband with LED lights
- Starboy 3: the first wireless headphone with dedicated X-Bass slide
- Starboy 4: the first wireless headphone with preset equalizer
We launched a total of 76 SKU’s. Some of the products which stood out and propelled our growth were the Creed Smartwatch, which is a 1.9” Smartwatch with an Always-On display. The Bold Smartwatch has Realtek High Performance Chipset on Dafit platform, while Flash X5/X5+ Wireless Neckband is a runaway-hit product with more than 1Mn units sold during the year. Rockstar Pro is our revolutionary new True Wireless Earphones with more than 100K units sold till date. We have also forayed into more consumer electronics like cables and chargers, with the All-in-One 25W that is a new charger which supports all fast charging technologies.
The trends we are expecting in 2023:
- WearTech or wearable technology will be redefined for mass and class. From Smartwatches to True Wireless Earphones, neckbands and an array of tech will accentuate user experience. Supported by AI, it will elevate functionality from fitness tracking and recommendations for music or voice assistance to make life simpler and on-the-move. We can also see smart jewelry that doubles up as utility apart from style
- Smartwatches will move from function to statement. While 2022 was all about getting the experience of a smartwatch, 2023 will be about flaunting it with chunky designs that go for each occasion. The price table for consumer durables in the lifestyle electronics space will go down across industry, thereby making the category accessible to more people
- True Wireless will become even more mainstream. We expect customers to move from wireless neckbands towards True Wireless solutions to accentuate experiences in the Metaverse, not just for gaming but new-age engagement across demographics
- True Wireless and AI-powered, smart automation solutions in soundbars and personal speakers will become more popular and mainstream
- Gaming products will continue to grow. From gaming armbands that accentuate experiences away from vibrations or grasp, they will give more control to people in the metaverse. The key to these are low latency, attractive form factors and massive upside in performance will dominate
