Xiaomi brings in South Asia head to revive Indian operations
Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi is bringing in Alexander Tang to head its India business as it looks to revive falling market share and improve performance in one of its key markets. Tang, who previously managed parts of Southeast Asia, will repla...
New Delhi: Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi is bringing in a Chinese national, Alexander Tang, to lead the India business as part of a strategic shift aimed at arresting its falling market share, said industry executives familiar with the matter.
Tang, who was managing Xiaomi’s presence in South Asian markets, will replace Chinese-origin British national Alvin Tse, who was heading the India region as general manager from 2022. Tse was pulled up by Xiaomi’s headquarters, according to the executives, for failing to turn the business around and scale it up across the ecosystem of products that the company sells in other markets, including in China.
“Tse is no longer going to look after the India business. He is making a lateral move to take care of a different region, though his exact official title is currently undisclosed,” said one of the executives, who did not wish to be identified, adding that Tse was managing the India business from China with the help of the Indian leadership.
The executives cited a strategic misstep over the past two years which led the company to move away from its model of aggressively pricing its products in favour of healthier margins, thereby ceding ground to rivals.
“Brands like Vivo became more aggressive in online channels, and Motorola directly copied Xiaomi’s original aggressive business model to successfully scale up and grow its market presence,” said an industry analyst.
Now, Xiaomi is appointing Tang as the regional head hoping for a turnaround. “He previously worked in the finance department before moving to a business profile three-four years ago. He was managing the Southeast Asia region, particularly Thailand and Indonesia, which saw strong growth under his leadership” another executive said.
There is an expectation that the new leadership will move back to the older strategy of aggressive pricing to regain the lost market share, according to the executives.
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Tang, they said, will now be in charge of driving profitability in the India region, which has seen one of the most notable declines across more than 100 regions where Xiaomi’s products are sold. India saw a significant drop in shipments in 2025 and dented the company’s global numbers, the company’s management recently said during an earnings call.
The change in strategy follows the appointment of key personnel in India including Kunal Agarwal, who joined as the deputy sales head in 2024 from Samsung. He was elevated as the senior director, head of sales, in 2025. The company also appointed former Motorola head Sudhin Mathur as the chief operating officer in 2024.
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Despite these high-profile appointments, the company’s market share has been sliding in India. At its peak, Xiaomi had a 31% share of the market in 2018, according to Counterpoint Research, making it the largest smartphone brand at the time. By 2024, its share had fallen to 16%. As of the first quarter of 2026, Xiaomi’s market share in India dropped to 12%.
With Tang’s appointment, the company will reshuffle the Indian leadership, according to the executives ET spoke to, and likely give Agarwal full control of sales and go-to-market strategies, while Mathur will lead on the regulatory front.
“A Chinese leader cannot run the show without depending heavily on the Indian leadership. But there is some reshuffling expected within the organisation. Headcount rationalisation is also happening in parallel,” said one of the executives.
