Friday, February 3, 2012

Blackberry Porsche and Nigerians


The first time I saw Blackberry Porsche's price on the web, I couldn't help laughing at RIM's strategy. I told myself that whoever heads the company's Business Development, and Product&Design units (or any other unit with similar functions) be sacked. Why anybody would redesign Bold 5 and sell it for as much as N400k is a mystery that's beyond me. I just laughed it off as a joke and moved on to something else. But everytime my mind drifts to the phone, a new angle to their business strategy pops up. The last one really caught me unawares because I never expected that I would ask myself such a question: what if the Blackberry Porsche was designed for the Nigerian market?

Like me, I am sure you are laughing at the question. But then, let's look at it more critically: Nigerians are people who worship status symbol more than integrity; we are known for our affinity to articles of ostentation. It is a known fact that many of the world's expensive 'toys' always find their way into the country in large numbers- and I have a feeling that the BB Porsche won't be an exception.

As much as everybody is screaming "I'd rather buy a plot of land than buy a Porsche", I won't be surprised to see undergraduates launch the phone pretty soon. Sadly, nobody wants to know the source of their money.

But then, I'm just thinking aloud; It's a free world. I just don't think it's worth buying if you are not comfortable enough to own one; but in a country where a Range Rover owner does not have a plot of land to his name, what's the big deal in a secondary school kid owning a BB Porsche? Lolz.

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