By: Chanda Kumar
Last updated : June 15, 2026 2:40 pm
Sanjeev Mehtani, Chief Sales Officer, Acer India talks to Retail4Growth about the company’s strategic approach to retail, Tier 2 & 3 penetration, customer expectations at retail and enhancing brand experience across diverse consumer segments.
Acer India, the leading technology brand with a diverse portfolio ranging from PCs to laptops, gaming devices and now even smart home appliances and luggage, is evolving to become a lifestyle brand. The company is focused on expanding its retail footprint nationwide, strengthening its omnichannel presence and ensuring a better in-store experience for customers across metros and smaller towns alike.
Sanjeev Mehtani, Chief Sales Officer, Acer India talks to Retail4Growth about the company’s strategic approach to retail, Tier 2 & 3 penetration, customer expectations at retail and enhancing brand experience across diverse consumer segments.
Can you tell us how Acer India is evolving to become a lifestyle brand?
Acer in India is now a group of five companies, not just one IT brand. Beyond Acer's core IT products, we have Acerpure (consumer electronics), Acer Fashion (lifestyle products), and Altos Computing. Upcoming launches include a health ring, smart eyewear under the Acer Fashion umbrella, with a smartwatch to follow. These are categories Acer has not been associated with previously, which is exciting.
Where does Acer India stand today in terms of its retail positioning, presence, and store formats?
Technology adoption in India is accelerating, driven by education and government-led digital initiatives, and the market has expanded well beyond metros into remote corners of the country. Acer's strategy is to be available everywhere, and we participate across four broad retail formats. The Acer Exclusive Stores (Acer Mall) come in two sub-formats, including the full-format stores in metros and Tier 2 cities, offering an immersive experience across our full product suite. These require more space and investment. Our Zip Stores are a smaller, lighter format designed for Tier 3 towns which carry a curated selection of key SKUs so the investment is manageable while still giving customers to look-and-feel the products.
Acer Plaza Stores is a hybrid format that brings together products from across the Acer Group umbrella — IT products, Consumer Electronics products (IFP displays, TVs, ACs), and even luggage — under one roof. The idea is to increase touch points and visibility. We currently have three Plaza stores: two in Ahmedabad and one in Bangalore. We are also present in multi-brand and Large Format Retail at the national and regional level.
The Gallery store format enables deeper Tier 3 penetration, where a channel partner outlet has full Acer branding, display units, and a structured MOU-based partnership. We are already doing this in several states, including Karnataka, and plan to expand it significantly. This format is our game-changer for reaching every corner of India.
Can you share a little on Acer India’s retail expansion strategy?
We have crossed 300 exclusive stores and are targeting 350 by year-end, so approximately 50 more to be added this year. Overall, we are present across roughly 5,000 touchpoints.
We are not chasing store count for its own sake. Every store we open is intended to be a long-term presence. We are being deliberate, because a store that closes in six months is a poor brand experience.
On a broader level, we are on the verge of launching a true omnichannel capability. Acer's own e-store will be connected to approximately 100 physical stores, enabling customers to browse and order online with fulfilment from the nearest store, or visit the store and transact through the e-store.
What is the revenue split across these retail channels?
Broadly, approximately 45% of our business comes from e-commerce and 55% from offline retail. Within that offline 55%, the breakdown is roughly 20% from exclusive stores, 20% from LFR and RLFR combined, whereas 10–15% from other go-to-market channels.
Tell us about experience-led formats, particularly the gaming or speciality stores.
We have 18 Acer Predator gaming stores, which fall under our exclusive store umbrella. Each has a gaming zone within the retail space where customers can sit, play, and experience the products alongside a full retail counter with gaming accessories and machines. These are speciality stores, laser-focused on gaming. Because these stores require significant investment, we have kept them to larger cities for now.
What is the role of the physical store in an era where people are comfortable buying laptops online?
You should know that India's PC penetration is still only around 4.5%, which means 95% of potential buyers are yet to purchase their first device. Those first-time buyers want to see, touch, and experience the product before committing. Even second and third-time buyers often visit a store to validate their decision before purchasing — online or offline.
Secondly, a physical store is essentially free advertising. The in-store and facade branding builds brand visibility at no ongoing media cost.
Also, in smaller towns, online comfort is lower for big-ticket purchases. IT products represent a major investment, and customers want reassurance before buying. The necessity of being available at a neighbourhood store is actually greater today than it was before, not less. If you are not visible, you are not under consideration.
How does the in-store experience and staff approach differ across metro, Tier 2, and Tier 3 markets?
The approach shifts meaningfully by market. In metros and Tier 2 cities, customers arrive having done extensive online research. Our staff need to function as consultants and not salespeople. Their job is to clarify doubts, answer informed questions, and engage in context-specific conversations. We have dedicated Acer-trained manpower placed at our exclusive stores and key LFR counters, with a full-time training team running daily programmes.
In Tier 3 markets, customers may have done some research but still come in seeking assurance and confirmation that what they've decided is right. The store associate needs to be a trusted recommender. Interestingly, having a trained person is even more critical in remote markets, because the local knowledge base is limited and the customer's confidence depends entirely on the person in front of them.
Language is also a key factor. We hire locally and train staff in regional languages, ensuring they can communicate naturally with the customer in their own tongue.