IN a bid to checkmate the illegal proliferation of its products, World’s Mobile device giant, AppleiStore has advised Nigerian consumers to avoid buying grey Apple products from unauthorised resellers, as these products do not conform to the brand values and service promise of Apple.
Core Group Africa’s Executive Director, Rutger-Jan van Spaandonk states that, “with the opening of iStore, genuine Apple products can now be bought in Nigeria at the right price and with the full scale support as well. Quality conscious Nigerian consumers can now enjoy the amazing Apple store experience as well as obtain full peace of mind. With the full two years warranty offered by Apple iStore and the world-class sales and technical team, Nigerians should resist the temptation of buying grey products from unauthorised resellers.”
Spaandonk stated further: “On the face of it, consumers may feel they are getting a great deal by buying grey products, since they are seemingly original but just sold but unauthorised retailers. But the customers still groan in the long run. In no time, customers realise they have bought products which cannot deliver on the brand promise. The economy also suffers, as duties are not usually paid to government by the importers of grey products”.
The grave implication for this trend is that brand values and equity are eroded and consumers’ loyalty lost. When brand promises are not fulfilled, consumers naturally begin to develop cold feet and lose faith in the ability of the products to deliver the promised utilities.
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