South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics is shutting down its flagship Samsung Experience store temporarily in Shanghai, China amid rising concerns regarding the spread of the deadly Coronavirus. The report was first published by the South Korean media network Yonhap News Agency. The 800-square meter Samsung Experience store in Shanghai was inaugurated in October 2019 and is an effort to reinvent smartphone sales and aftersales services
According to the publication, this is a precautionary step by Samsung. The company intends to resume operations starting Feb. 9, although the date might be postponed depending on the situation in China. With the outbreak of the Wuhan Coronavirus, numerous OEMs and ODM suppliers in China have shut operations either partially or entirely. The manufacturing schedule was partially delayed by the Chinese New Year celebrations, and the outbreak did not help. According to Yonhap, various third-party Galaxy S20 case manufacturers have informed retailers of their inability to meet previous deadlines.
The problem is likely to extend beyond smartphone accessory suppliers soon, with Yonhap estimating global supplies to fall by 2 percent this year. The only positive news for fans of the Samsung brand is that the company is not solely reliant on China for manufacturing smartphones. Certain ODM models like the Galaxy A01 are still manufactured solely in the country, resulting in shorter supply once the ODMs fail to meet production deadlines. In terms of availability, most of Samsung’s flagship products are safe.
Samsung is not the only electronics manufacturer to feel the heat, as China accounts for over 70 percent of global smartphone production. An outbreak of this scale is sure to impact other global electronics brands based in the country, including Apple, Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, Vivo, and OnePlus to name a few.
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