News in Short
- Nothing will spin off CMF into a standalone Indian company.
- CMF is expected to become a majority Indian-owned consumer technology brand.
- CMF is already headquartered in India and became an independent Indian entity earlier this year.
- Nothing CEO Carl Pei highlighted India’s growing consumer electronics market.
- Pei said 99% of smartphones sold in India are manufactured domestically.
Nothing is planning a major change for its CMF brand. The company has announced plans to spin off CMF from its London-based parent.
Under the new structure, CMF will become a standalone Indian company. It is also expected to become majority Indian-owned.
Nothing CEO and founder Carl Pei announced the move in an article titled “India Is Inevitable”. The announcement highlights the company’s growing focus on India.
CMF was launched around two years ago as a sub-brand of Nothing. It has since developed into a consumer technology brand with products across smartphones and accessories.
CMF Will Become a Standalone Indian Company
The planned restructuring will separate CMF from Nothing’s existing corporate structure.
CMF will no longer operate as a subsidiary of the smartphone maker. Instead, it will be constituted as a standalone Indian firm.
However, Nothing will continue to remain a stakeholder in CMF after the restructuring.
The company has already taken steps towards establishing CMF in India. CMF became an independent entity registered and headquartered in the country earlier this year.
The brand is therefore moving beyond simply manufacturing and selling products in India. Its corporate structure is also becoming more closely tied to the country.
Carl Pei Highlights India’s Consumer Electronics Growth
Pei used his latest article to highlight India’s position in the global smartphone market.
According to Pei, India has become the world’s second-largest smartphone maker. He also pointed to domestic manufacturing as another major development.
Pei stated that 99% of smartphones sold in India are manufactured domestically.
Based on this growth, he said CMF will soon become a majority Indian-owned company.
Nothing Wants More R&D to Happen in India
The restructuring also comes with a broader ambition for India’s technology ecosystem.
Pei said India needs to build an end-to-end research and development ecosystem. He described “Real R&D” as the ability to design, engineer and continuously improve products in-house.
According to Pei, this approach could help India develop global consumer electronics brands.
He compared this potential with the development of major consumer technology industries in Japan, China and South Korea.
CMF Is Already Headquartered in India
CMF’s India connection has been growing for some time.
The brand is already headquartered in India. Earlier this year, it became an independent Indian entity and registered its operations in the country.
Nothing has also expanded its presence in India. The company recently inaugurated its first flagship store in the country.
The upcoming restructuring therefore builds on steps that Nothing has already taken in the Indian market.
Government Support Adds to the Changing Landscape
The announcement also comes as India expands its focus on domestic electronics manufacturing.
The source notes that the Union Cabinet recently approved the Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme, or MPSE.
The scheme has a reported budget allocation of Rs 62,500 crore. It aims to support homegrown electronics brands while encouraging technological capability and economies of scale.
For CMF, the planned standalone structure could therefore place the brand within a broader Indian consumer electronics ecosystem.
