During one January intensive course, the class talked about how
the Beijing-based electronics company Xiaomi grew so fast, so soon. In just
eight years, Xiaomi went from a team of eight engineers to a publicly traded
company with an implied valuation of $54 billion that could rival Apple. With
Apple predicting lower revenue generation this year, eyes are on Xiaomi, whose
differentiated product strategy and vision about global consumerism may prove
to be more enduring.
Many refer to Xiaomi as China’s Apple. While true that Xiaomi
learned a lot from Apple in terms of strategy, the company has developed its
own path to success.…