Portable iPhone returned to the market after 2 years of the epidemic. However, the current situation is volatile.
The Vietnamese market has a high specificity with the presence of hand-carried products on a small-traffic basis. After a two-year hiatus due to the epidemic, the source of hand-carried goods gradually resumed. During the sale of iPhone 14, many Vietnamese people plan to go to Singapore to buy goods.
However, the current situation was much different. Those who have been selling portable iPhones for a long time are no longer confident that this type of product can be restored to the way it was before the epidemic.
The reappearance of portable products
In the period 2020-2021, most of the flight routes between Vietnam and other countries in the region will be interrupted. This makes portable iPhone shipments from the US, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong (China) or Singapore unable to arrive. Besides, road transport from China is also facing difficulties when the quarantine at border gates is tightened.
The sale of iPhone 13 series is almost absent of portable goods. Photo: TopZone.
By the end of 2021, many domestic dealers told Zing that almost all portable iPhone goods had been eradicated. According to an unnamed source, the number of iPhone 13 hand-carried to Vietnam during that period was only 1/10 of previous years. Many people who specialize in this item have switched to selling genuine machines.
“Previously, the ratio of portable and genuine iPhone was 1:1. Currently, it takes 9 genuine machines to be sold to have one laptop”, a representative of a large retailer in Ho Chi Minh City shared in November 2021.
However, as soon as the epidemic situation of countries was controlled, direct flights to many countries reopened, a large number of portable iPhones continued to be brought back to Vietnam. In particular, iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 products from the Japanese market, which are 30% cheaper than domestic machines, created a big wave in the market.
After the release date of iPhone 14 was announced, many portable iPhone dealers quickly booked flight tickets and hotels to Singapore and Thailand to collect goods. “After 2 years of hiatus due to the epidemic, I will fly to Singapore to bring the iPhone 14 back soon to serve regular customers,” Phuc Buu, an iPhone dealer in Vung Tau City, shared with Zing.
The situation is different
However, the source of portable iPhone 14 from countries in the region is forecasted to serve only in the short term. Even those prepared to queue to buy iPhones in Singapore are not confident in the recovery of the small quota market.
Time and the selling price advantage of portable goods is no longer large. Photo: KeyStone.
“It is still too early to assess the market’s reaction to hand-carried goods after two years of suspension,” said Mr. Buu. At the same time, this person said that this trip to Singapore did not focus too much on business factors. The reason is that after a long hiatus, the sources of goods and transportation routes have changed a lot.
Mr. Buu’s goal in the first batch of iPhone 14 is to explore the market. If favorable, this person will bring a few machines back to the country to sell to regular customers.
Meanwhile, Mr. Ta Hung, an iPhone seller in Hanoi, said he did not participate in this shipment of iPhone 14. “I see that the people going to Singapore and Thailand this time are mainly in the small business group, trying to bring back goods to serve customers who want to own the device soon. In fact, this group is not too many”, Mr. Hung shared.
According to this seller, most iPhone “traders” will focus on selling portable iPhone 14 in the first 1-2 weeks. By the beginning of October, when genuine products open for sale, most of them will switch to this type of product.
Talking to Zing, Mr. Nguyen Lac Huy, representative of retailer CellphoneS, said that the current situation has changed. “The biggest difference is time and price. Genuine iPhone 14 will sell quite soon, after about 2 weeks. The selling price of domestic machines is not much different from portable products. In return, users enjoy easy warranty and after-sales service,” Mr. Huy said.
However, the problem Apple needs Apple to solve is the number of goods supplied. In 2020, genuine iPhone 12 is seriously lacking in goods, priced on the black market. Not patient enough to wait for months, many users turned to portable purchases.
The current situation shows that the shortage of goods in Vietnam may continue. The iPhone 14 Pro / Pro Max series is out of stock in many major markets such as the US, China… Waiting time can last 4-6 weeks.
@ Zing News