Things are looking rosy for Honor on its home turf these days.

Months after reaching the bottom of 5.1% market share in China in January 2021, the former Huawei sub-brand trumped Xiaomi to enter the August 2021 list of top three smartphone brands in the Eastern Asian country. This is according to Counterpoint Research’s latest Monthly Market Pulse Service report.

The market-research firm said Honor’s sales in China increased 18% month on month in August, making it one of the country’s fastest-growing phone vendors. Its performance last month placed the company behind only Vivo and OPPO, which captured 23% and 21% of the Chinese market, respectively.

What are the factors that are helping Honor regain its growth momentum, especially after it was sold by Huawei?

Counterpoint research director Tarun Pathak explained that the brand was able to restore ties with component players amid supply issues. One proof: the Honor 50 and Honor 50 Pro, which debuted the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G chip that’s now being used by devices such as the Realme GT Master Edition, Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G, and Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE.

“Since then, leveraging its strong research and development capabilities, Honor has launched new products and has been on a rapid recovery path in China. The Honor 50 series has been an instant success in the mid-segment. Honor is also targeting the premium segment with the Magic series, thus expanding its portfolio across price bands,” Pathak stated.

Then there are the loyal Huawei and Honor users, plus its strong relationship with distributors. Understand that the brand’s shareholders include China’s biggest electronic-gadget distributors — a distinct advantage if one wants to have a huge offline presence there.

However, Honor’s market-share growth will likely be gradual outside China (where Xiaomi is making waves), Counterpoint Research senior analyst Varun Mishra said. “Loyalty in the mid-segment remains low, and Honor will also have to rebuild its distribution network. Then, there are also intensifying component shortages, which can likely hinder its expansion in 2021.”

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Alora Uy Guerrero

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Editor-in-chief: Alora Uy Guerrero has 22 years of experience as an editor for print and digital publications such as Yahoo. She took time off journalism to manage OPPO’s digital-marketing campaigns. When not busy with her babies, she’s working on Revü, a passion project — or probably traveling or obsessing over her favorite bands, movies, TV shows, and basketball teams.