Amazon owned Ring says it is looking towards expanding its operations into Africa, following increasing demand for its products.
The video doorbell maker, which launched in the UAE and the region in 2017 during Gitex Technology, says it has had several enquirties from various parts of Africa during the past year.
“The demand from Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya has been good. We see a great interest and have started exploring options to tie-up with local distributors,” says Mohammad Meraj Hoda, Vice President, Business Development at Ring in the UAE and the region.
Ring provides an affordable alternative to more expensive home security solutions and is known for its ease of use and set up. The US-based startup created news when it was acquired by Amazon for US$1 billion. The company recently launched Ring Alarm – a device that can alert in case of fire.
In the UAE, on its first anniversary Ring said it is showcasing two new products – the Video Doorbell Pro, and Floodlight Cam. “Both products have advanced motion detectors and like all our other products is easy to set up,” he said.
Within the UAE, its products have sold more in villas and townhouses compared to apartments. “That’s because the video doorbell is most attractive to homes that have no additional layers of security in the first place. Apartments in the UAE provide that,” he said.
“However most of our clients living in apartments have brought it in order to monitor the nannies,” he adds.
Ring also enables users to charge their devices using solar power. “The batteries last for almost three to six months. Solar power adds additional bandwidth. You can further extend the battery life by intelligently adjusting the timeframe for monitoring,” says Hoda.
The starter-kit with Doorbell Pro is priced at AED799 and is sold across all major retail outlets, including online retailers Noon and Amazon owned Souq.com.
But sales are being driven more by retail sales. “At least 70 percent of our sales are from brick and mortar retail outlets,” he adds.
