Specialized aftermarket products and new marketing strategies have kept the decline in U.S. cellular telephone sales from affecting accessory product sales, according to several cellular accessory manufacturers and distributors.
There has been a slight decline in point-of-purchase accessory sales in recent years, said Gershon Cooper, president of Ora Electronics, an accessories manufacturer based in Chatsworth, Calif. Point-of-purchase items include leather cases, low-capacity batteries and cigarette lighter adapters. “Five years ago, we were more focused on antennas. Now, on enhancement products. The market is moving away from commodity products and the consumer is demanding more specialized products. We are driving that demand by advertising products so they (buyers) know that enhanced products exist,” Cooper said.
Aftermarket sales have increased despite curbed cellular phone sales because users always are looking for ways to upgrade what they have, Cooper explained.
The growing popularity of the portable phone posed a challenge for The Antenna Co. of Itasca, Ill. Subscribers using portables often don’t purchase and a car antenna.
Still, “There has been no decline in the antenna business,” said Rosemary Maher, the company’s director of marketing. “There would be if we weren’t addressing portable phones.”
The Antenna Co. offers an external antenna adapter kit, which replaces the original antenna. “This allows people with a portable to connect to an antenna, because antennas are the secret of performance, linking the phone to the tower,” Maher said.
The Antenna Co. also now sells accessories, particularly to appeal to carriers wanting to purchase as much as they can from one source. Beginning in April, accessories will come in matching packaging branded Maxim by The Antenna Co. “Carriers wanted full service from one source. Packaged alike, everything will have the same look,” Maher said.
CellStar Corp. of Dallas has taken that approach a step further with its original equipment manufacturer agreements. “Our push for 1996 is our OEM products,” said Michael King, CellStar marketing manager. “The items come from the manufacturer to us, ” including products from Nokia Mobile Phones, Motorola Inc., NEC Corp., Ericsson Inc. and Oki telecom.
“They are packaged with a seal from the manufacturer in self-selling boxes that have four-color photography and lifestyle photos. The packaging has a continuity and same look, same size. The consumer thinks he’s buying an original manufacturers’ product. The dealer-agent can get a product that’s not a clone, and carriers can even get private labeling,” King said.
CellStar reported cellular accessory sales in December were up 21.1 percent when compared with December 1994. CellStar installs and operates cellular booths in 349 Sam’s Club stores nationwide.
