Samenvatting

Traditional toy industries have been influenced by the emergence of tech gadgets such as iPad and Virtual Reality Glasses. Based on a report on The Telegraph (2010), tech gadgets have replaced traditional dolls and cars as children’s favorite presents. Huawei, one of the China’s leading toy companies, is investigating the opportunity to fight downturn in traditional toys by selling Mobile VR to Europe. This research paper aims at producing an advice for Huawei regarding the entry strategy. Therefore, the central question of this study is formulated as “What is the best internationalization strategy for Huawei Technology Group to develop its Virtual Reality Headset business from China to the Netherlands?”
The research has been based on the framework of strategy designing process model by de Wit and Mayer (2014). The literature review and related chapters concerns about the background information of virtual reality, information technology and traditional toy industry, as well as success stories from other businesses in form of case studies. These forms the basis for understanding the product and the market trend. Additionally, information for this study is mainly collected via desk research, questionnaires and interviews.
The results have demonstrated that there is an unprecedented market potential of Mobile VR glasses with educational and entertainment functions in the Netherlands among teenagers from 10 to 20 and their parents. Using trading companies to enter the Dutch market at the early stage and changing to strategic alliance or foreign direct investment at the later stage for the company can be convenient. Besides, for market penetration, retail price of VR glasses in Dutch market can be set around 35 to 45 euros. Retailers such as Media Market, Inter Toys, Cool Blue can be liaised for cooperation. In promotion strategies, digital marketing and physical catalogue can be used as the main media of promotion for business and individual buyers respectively.
The first recommendation for Huawei is to conduct deeper research on Helmet-mounted Display VR as it can provide better user experiences and adopt better technology than Mobile VR. Secondly, Huawei should invest in VR glasses companies in Europe to obtain better margin. The study is limited by the lack of opinions from teenagers, thus further research on their opinions is needed.