Xiaomi home, the “7-11” in mobile phone stores?

Towards the end of the year, a period of time has passed since the Double Eleven and Double Twelve Shopping Festivals. Many friends around me have replaced themselves with new sets of devices, and many of them have started with iPhone 12.

During the communication with my friends, I found an interesting phenomenon. Several friends who are used to buying small products in retail stores turned to e-commerce stores to buy quick charging kits this year.

The reason is also very simple, this year iPhone 12 does not ship a charger, and the new fast charging kit in the digital accessories store near their residence is either low or not available. If you don't go to the e-commerce platform to buy, you can only go to the Xiaomi home a few kilometers away.

Mi Home is a basket

I have the same feelings for what a few friends said, especially when I was on a business trip, I suddenly came to a relatively unfamiliar environment, and then encountered the charger or the charging cable damage, not to mention it is too bad.

Whether it is a USB-C to lightning interface charging cable or a dual USB-C port charging cable, it is not easy to find a retail store nearby, and it takes too long for the e-commerce channel to purchase the goods. , With the decline in power, battery anxiety will become more and more serious.

Once I found 3 mobile phone accessories stores and repair shops in a row, but they were all out of stock, and I went to a mobile phone sales store, but the cables sold offline were mainly ordinary USB-C cables, and in the end it was the same as my friends. I bought it from the relatively nearby Xiaomi home.

Similar cases are not uncommon. Compared with other mobile phone sales stores or mobile phone repair shops, the category and volume of Mijia wire products are unexpectedly complete, except for the commonly used USB-C charging cables for Android phones, and the iPhone’s MFI certification There are also charging cables.

It is a good solution to use Mi Home as an emergency option. As an offline store, its advantages are not limited to the "instant availability" of mobile phone accessories.

A colleague in the editorial department of Ai Faner shared with me his "urgent moment", also on a business trip. This editorial colleague took a number of photos when reporting the conference, and when the article was finished, he thought of the computer when he needed to add pictures. All above are USB-C data interfaces, there is no corresponding camera memory card interface, and the old camera just used does not support WiFi image transfer.

At this time, it embodies the value of the VAIO SX12 ultra-full interface computer, a veritable business travel artifact.

No way, this editorial colleague could only go to a nearby retail store to find an interface or borrow a computer with a camera memory card. He also went to several mobile phone sales stores but could not find it. Finally, he went to the Xiaomi home and found one. Game book.

Relatively thin and light, the computer interface of the game is relatively more comprehensive. Plug in the memory card and upload the photos to the network disk before downloading. Finally, the article is completed.

This situation is not an isolated case. In my daily life and work, I often observe the opinions of my friends and colleagues on digital accessories. Others mention the Mi Home frequently, and there are even various ridicules, such as "The nearest professional iPhone accessory store", "Mijia grocery store" and so on.

From these answers and cases, it can also be seen that Xiaomi’s home, as an offline retail store, is still quite recognized, not only because the wire is relatively cheap and after-sales, but more importantly, its product categories are relatively comprehensive. It is also more interesting to stroll around, and it is one of the stores that digital enthusiasts like.

Like Apple’s MFI-certified accessories, the speeds introduced by Mijia are almost the first batch. There are almost all dual-C cables, ordinary USB-C cables, and USB-C to lightning cables, although they may not have the best performance. , But if the category is complete enough, it can be used in emergency or daily use.

In addition to these, there are products such as air conditioners, computers, routers, etc. It is no wonder that users are ridiculed as "Mijia grocery stores." And from behind the so-called "accessories, grocery stores", we can also get a glimpse of the development of digital electronic products and the way Xiaomi's home is as a retail store.

Not top, but comprehensive

Back to the charging line, what makes it difficult for offline stores to buy USB-C to lightning interface and double C ports?

The first is the changes brought about by the product. After bidding farewell to 5V1A, although Apple has brought a fast charging kit, it also requires the use of a USB-C to lightning charging cable and corresponding fast charging charger based on the fast charging protocol. It is not delivered in the iPhone 12 series. After the charger, Xiaomi also plans to remove the charging head on Xiaomi Mi 11. Choosing the right charger afterwards may become the norm.

However, it is quite cumbersome to understand the corresponding standards and support agreements of charging cables and chargers, which is equivalent to deepening the purchase difficulty for consumers.

This is also the reason why some users hope that Apple will change the USB-C port on the iPhone. The USB-C port is better to buy than the USB-C to lightning charging cable. After all, the form is unified, although this expectation may be lost. .

Ordinary mobile phone repair shops or digital accessory stores mainly sell ordinary USB-A to USB-C cables or ordinary lightning charging cables. The long-term product sales environment is difficult to change quickly. Ordinary small retail stores still need to sell High-frequency products are profitable, and it will take some time for new products to be deployed offline.

On the other hand, there are problems caused by USB-C itself. The front and back plug and the support for high-speed transmission make it popular. Now most Android phones use USB-C charging ports, but due to USB-C itself The supported protocols are too rich for ordinary users to distinguish.

If the original charging cable and charger are lost or damaged, the user should continue to buy the original. The third party is more troublesome. It depends not only on the fast charging protocol supported by the charger, but also on the current intensity of the USB-C cable. , Whether it supports 2.4A or 5A current.

Now you may be able to understand why a dual-C port data cable in the Apple Store can sell so expensive. Current transmission speed and data transmission speed are optional conditions. The more types and strengths supported, the more expensive the price. .

And because the ordinary USB interface is still relatively mainstream, the USB-C interface will inevitably need to be transferred. However, the USB-C docking station is also a product with many choices. Consumers often need to switch according to the number of devices and computers they transfer. The charger power, data transmission speed, compatibility, etc. to choose.

A friend of mine, because of the need to transfer two 4K monitors at the same time, the ordinary docking station can no longer meet, and in the end he can only buy a good data for 1,500 yuan.

Whether it’s a USB-C to lightning charging cable or a dual-C port charging cable, or it’s not popular enough as a new product, low-frequency products can’t be sold for a long time, small stores are reluctant to sell, or there are too many specifications and agreements, small stores compare Hard to cover.

The Mi Home adopts a relatively compromised approach. Whether it is a charging cable or a USB-C docking station, most of it sells basic models, only to cover the category, not the top performance batch, after all, ordinary consumption Those who buy the basic model are more frequent, and of course the unit price is lower.

The same idea can also be seen in other products sold by Xiaomi’s Home. The products it sells may not be top-notch, but there are still a large number of basic products to choose from. More categories are added to provide a more complete category, which enhances the "walking" experience. You can often see children experiencing products such as balancing cars, consulting smart speakers, and computers.

To say that Mi Home is a mobile phone store is more like a digital product retail store.

Xiaomi home, the "7-11" in mobile phone stores?

In recent years, the rise of new retail and smart retail has caused more and more companies to pay attention to retail stores. This is one of the new directions when online user growth is getting harder and harder. Domestic mobile phone manufacturers are also one of them. In addition to OPPO and vivo, which have a long-term store base, domestic mobile phone manufacturers such as Xiaomi and Huawei are also paying more and more attention to offline stores.

We mentioned the awakening of the store awareness of domestic mobile phone manufacturers in the article "The Store is the Product". Through better and more consumer-friendly design and multiple interactive services, the store has gradually become a "third space" , Just like a community center, bringing consumers closer to the brand.

It can be seen that OPPO, vivo, Huawei, Xiaomi, etc. have opened many flagship stores in recent years. Large area, more textured design and store furnishings are one of their common points.

Of course, there are still some differences in the direction and progress of each retail store. For example, Xiaomi has a larger advantage in product category and magnitude. In addition to design, interactive courses, etc. to enhance the consumer experience of shopping in the store In addition, it can also enhance the shopping experience through a large number of products.

Gathering sand into a tower, a large number of products are not the result of the efforts of one Xiaomi company. It can be said that the Xiaomi ecological chain enterprises have played a lot of roles during this period. To be smaller, many of the charging cables sold by Xiaomi Home are produced by Zimi , Going big, air purifiers, sweeping robots and other products are also supplied by many companies.

As a domestic mobile phone company that entered the IoT field earlier, Xiaomi can transform the advantages of the ecological chain into product quantity advantages, category coverage advantages, and even time advantages.

Toshifumi Suzuki, the founder of the 7-11 company in Japan, pointed out in the book "The Philosophy of Retailing" how 7-11 as a convenience store fights against the supermarket and the experience that really makes it successful is that everything is user-oriented. The book The 24-hour operation and the provision of more convenient and delicious food are the result of pursuing user needs.

And if you compare 7-11 and Xiaomi’s Home, you will find that there are indeed some similarities between them. Although they are in different fields, they are frequently cross-border, and the products sold are relatively mixed.

Behind the "miscellaneous", it actually implies a grasp of user needs. Today, as products are becoming more and more complex, consumers need to know a lot of information before choosing a product. When buying a mobile phone, they must understand the corresponding standards of accessories. If you buy a computer, you need to understand the corresponding performance and compatibility protocol of the expansion accessories.

But in fact, ordinary consumers just want a usable accessory. At this time, it makes more sense to provide basic accessories with a more complete coverage.

Of course, as a retail store, coverage is also a very important indicator. Xiaomi recently announced that it has opened 1,000 Xiaomi Home retail stores, and most of them are located in shopping malls. As a landmark commercial district in the city, the degree of convenience is still reasonable. Guaranteed.

It seems that Xiaomi’s Home is a “grocery store”, but it does meet the needs of consumers for product categories, and at the same time makes it more resistant to “going around”. After all, there are more products that can be experienced, and more comprehensive categories will come down in the long run It also helps to retain consumers for a long time.

In addition to the functional linkage between Xiaomi mobile phones and Internet of Things products, which can encourage consumers to stay in Xiaomi’s software and hardware ecology, a more comprehensive category is also conducive to fixing consumer habits. For example, Xiaomi’s being ridiculed as a "professional iPhone accessory supplier" is actually Many iPhone users are accustomed to buying accessories at Xiaomi House.

It is foreseeable that Xiaomi will continue to promote the retail strategy of "grocery store", it is no longer just a mobile phone retail store.

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