Toshiba appoints new MD for Southern Africa

"When Toshiba opened its doors in South Africa six years ago, the business reported to our German company, Toshiba TEG," says Abe. "This division took care of the European, Russian and Middle Eastern business operations, in addition to overseeing the local South African business. As the company has grown in response to the popularity of Toshiba products on the African continent and the Middle East, we have now repositioned the local business to be a part of the Toshiba Gulf business, based in Dubai. This will improve logistical efficiencies significantly, enabling us to bring a wider range of Toshiba products to the market at more competitive prices."

Large markets are shrinking

The company will be investing in human resource capacity to further position the local company to maximise the potential that exists in the sub-Saharan market. "Many large territories, such as the United States and Europe, are shrinking, and the production capacity in these areas is much higher than demand, particularly in the personal computing environment. The Chinese market is enormous, but it is dominated by its own local brands.

"Toshiba recognises significant opportunities for growth in the sub-Saharan Africa market, particularly in the personal computing space, and our expanded teams will be working hard to increase visibility of our award-winning products and value-added business channels in countries like Kenya, Angola and Nigeria, ahead of expansion into the rest of the region from our strong foundations in South Africa," Abe says.

Improving service centres

"Our focus for 2012 has been the introduction of new products, many of which are service oriented, to complement the range of notebooks, storage devices and other items that Toshiba already brings to market. We will also be improving our service centres to support these new products, to ensure that every Toshiba customer falls in love with their product, and with the experience of interacting with our brand."

Abe has been employed by Toshiba for 32 years, and has occupied senior positions in the company in the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland and at its head office in Tokyo, Japan.