Xiaomi launches into Western Europe with a new base of operations in Spain

Xiaomi is big. Not as big as Samsung, Apple, or Huawei but their strong market presence in China and India, the two most populous countries in the world, helps them sell a lot of devices. Xiaomi makes a lot of products too. They aren’t just about the smartphone, smartwatch, and tablet ecosystem; they also produce audio and Bluetooth products, power banks, notebooks, lamps, e-scooters and more. As well as selling through retail partners, Xiaomi also has 220 of their own stores with the goal for the next three years to increase this to 1000 within China and another 120 worldwide.

Xiaomi held a press event in Spain where they announced that it would be the first country outside of China that would receive the full ‘Xiaomi business model’ including e-commerce partners (e.g., Amazon), and authorized stores (e.g., Mediamarkt), in addition to their physical Mi Stores and mi.com online platform. While Xiaomi already has an Eastern European presence in Poland and Russia, Spain was chosen as the major launch zone due to the high number of dedicated and active fans in the country.

Two products headlining the event were the Xiaomi Mi A1 and Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 which will now have wider availability. The Mi A1 is part of the Android One program, providing a solid mid-range phone equipped with a Snapdragon 625, 4 GB of RAM, 64 GB of storage and a near stock Android experience with a confirmed update path. The Mi Mix 2 is a flagship entry with the Snapdragon 835, 6/8 GB of RAM, 64/128/256 GB of Storage, and a bezel-less 18:9 display.

NotebookCheck staff who were at the event asked what impact this European presence would have for those in other European Union countries who would currently have to buy a direct import device, pay import tax, and deal with a slow and complicated warranty process. The answer was that other EU countries should be able to order via the Spanish channels and have the device shipped to their country. When asking about the availability of the Xiaomi Mi Air 12, Xiaomi Mi Air 13, and Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro, the answer was that they would employ a “wait and see” approach to whether these officially came to Spain.

The Mi A1 will retail from EU €229, and the Mi Mix 2 from EU €499 (6 GB RAM / 64 GB Storage). These prices are impressive and compete well with the rates from importers such as GearBest and Banggood, especially once import tax is factored in. These and many other Xiaomi products will be available from 8 November (Amazon and mi.com), 11 November (Mi Stores), and 22 November (retail partners).