????路透社 – 未來幾個月內，中國最大的智能手機企業小米將開始通過網店在美國銷售耳機、智能腕帶和其他配件。這是小米進入蘋果公司（Apple）大本營的初步嘗試，其中不包括小米標志性的移動設備。

????小米還表示，即將和一家巴西制造企業結為合作伙伴。今年上半年小米的產品將在巴西這個拉美最大的經濟體亮相，而制造合作伙伴將有助于小米繞開巴西政府對進口電子產品征收的懲罰性關稅。

????作為一家有五年歷史的行業新貴，小米在一夜之間就成了中國銷售增長最快的手機品牌。同時，該公司一直在通過直銷和網絡渠道迅速進行國際擴張。

????在去年12月融資后，小米公司的價值達到了450億美元。這次融資吸引的投資者既有新加坡主權財富基金，也有阿里巴巴的聯合創始人馬云所支持的私募公司。

????由于成本低，再加上小米非常倚重與用戶的互動以及用戶反饋，小米移動設備頗受中國消費者青睞。現在，小米的網店已經覆蓋了整個亞洲，包括最近剛剛涉足的印度市場。

????巴西是小米智能手機在亞洲以外的第一站。該公司的全球業務副總裁雨果?巴拉表示，小米計劃于今年上半年開始在巴西銷售手機。

????巴拉曾在谷歌（Google）的管理層任職，他說小米正在和至少六家巴西制造企業進行“極為深入的探討”，但沒有透露這些企業的名稱。這將有助于小米規避巴西約60%的進口電子產品稅。

????業界特別想知道小米在美國的發展潛力。美國是全球最大的移動設備市場（以美元計），但美國的手機銷售由電信公司控制，而且還有蘋果這個行業霸主。

????小米的聯合創始人及總裁林斌周四對記者表示，小米將在幾個月內推出第一個網店Mi.com，向美國消費者直銷小米耳機和智能腕帶等產品。

????該公司暫時不會在美國推出手機和平板電腦等價格較高的產品，部分原因是美國的電信公司銷售模式和手機補貼結構會讓小米的成本優勢化為烏有。此外，林斌和巴拉還提到，為各個市場量身定制基于安卓（Android）的米柚（MIUI）操作系統以及申請許可證等工作都需要投入時間和精力。

????目前，小米的主要目標包括接觸美國消費者；像在中國和印度那樣，舉行粉絲活動并在Facebook等社交媒體上與用戶互動，從而設法在美國建立小米社區；逐步了解本地市場偏好并打響品牌知名度。

????舉例來說，巴拉向路透社記者介紹了小米將如何向美國的音樂發燒友推廣小米耳機，以及如何基于反饋來調整這個產品。

????他對記者說：“我們迫切希望與美國消費者進行交流。”（財富中文網）

????譯者：Charlie

????審稿：Sissi

????(Reuters) – Xiaomi, China’s largest smartphone company, will begin selling headphones, smart wristbands and other accessories online in the United States in coming months, taking its first tentative step onto Apple’s home turf without its signature Mi mobile devices.

????The company also said it is close to securing a manufacturing partner in Brazil, which will help it skirt punishing tariffs on imported electronics when it begins sales in Latin America’s largest economy in the first half of this year.

????Xiaomi, a five-year-old upstart whose name means “Little Rice,” came out of nowhere to become China’s fastest-selling mobile brand. It has been rapidly expanding its global footprint through direct, online sales.

????The company was valued at $45 billion in a December funding round that drew investors ranging from Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund to a private capital firm backed by Alibaba Group co-founder Jack Ma.

????Its Mi devices, which scored with Chinese users because of their low cost and the company’s heavy reliance on user interaction and feedback, are now sold online across Asia, including most recently India.

????Brazil marks the company’s first foray with smartphones outside of its home continent. Global operations vice president Hugo Barra said Xiaomi intends to begin selling its phones there in the first half of this year.

????The company is in “extremely advanced discussions” with at least half a dozen manufacturing partners there, Barra, a former Google executive, said without revealing names, which will help it side-step a roughly 60 percent tax on foreign electronics.

????The industry is particularly curious about Xiaomi’s potential to make a dent in the United States, which is the world’s biggest mobile market in dollar terms but one where phone sales are controlled by telecoms carriers and where Apple holds sway.

????Co-founder and President Lin Bin told reporters on Thursday that Xiaomi will launch its first online sales site, Mi.com, in a few months, directly selling items from earphones to smart bands to American consumers.

????The company is eschewing bigger-ticket items like phones and tablets for now partly because of the United States’ carrier-sales and phone subsidy structure, which eliminates Xiaomi’s cost advantage. More generally, Bin and Barra talked about the time and effort needed to tailor its MIUI Android-based operating systems for individual markets and obtain certification, among other things.

????Xiaomi’s main intention for now is to engage American consumers and try and build a community there the same way it has in China and India – through fan events, interaction with users on social media such as a dedicated Facebook page, and gradually coming to know both local preferences and building its brand.

????For example, Barra told Reuters how Xiaomi might put its self-branded headphones in front of U.S. audiophiles and tweak the product depending on their detailed feedback.

????“We’re keen on being in the conversation in the U.S.,” he told reporters.