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Dell targets overseas sales
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May 21, 1997: 3:15 p.m. ET
PC maker sees big opportunity for expansion in Europe, Asia
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Dell Computer Corp. Founder and Chairman Michael Dell sees room for improvement in his overseas sales figures -- and plans to do something about it.
Speaking on CNNfn's "Business Day," Dell said his company, which sells its computers directly to buyers, would seek to increase sales in Europe, which he believes to be under-penetrated.
"Western Europe ... [has] about nine people for every one PC, where in the U.S., it's about three to one. So there's still a lot of growth left outside the United States," he said.
Dell's earnings results, released Tuesday, showed it to have the third-highest sales in Europe, behind IBM Corp. and Compaq Computer Corp. The company said it hoped to grab about 10 percent of German sales by the end of the year.
The company intends to provide more details on European results in a Thursday press conference.
Plans for the European operation include allowing buyers to check on orders and delivery dates by computer and increasing the number of products customers can order online.
Asia is another area where Dell has been making a push. In the last 12 months, his company has moved into 10 new countries.
"China is definitely a market that we're going to be targeting for future growth," he said. "I would also say India and Indonesia are future markets for us .... So we haven't totally covered the world with the direct [order] system, but we're certainly getting there."
Dell said these burgeoning markets should keep the PC market growing, despite concerns of a slowdown. Constant technological changes will also help, he said.
"You have a strong replacement cycle, as motivated by new operating systems like Windows NT. The new microprocessors that Intel is bringing us this year -- the Pentium II and MMX processors -- are driving a strong wave of replacement demand," he said.
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Dell Computer
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