How Manu Kumar Jain became the face of Xiaomi India

As Xiaomi Group's Manu Kumar Jain moves on, Social Samosa takes a closer look at the role he has played in building the brand. From doing tech reviews to starting his own channel, Jain has played a pivotal role in shaping brand's image in India.

Xiaomi's Managing Director and Global Vice President, Manu Kumar Jain has put in his papers. He took to LinkedIn to announce his resignation from Xiaomi Group. Jain joined the tech company nine years ago to start its India journey after co-founding e-commerce brand Jabong.

Announcing his exit, he said, "After nine years, I am moving on from the Xiaomi Group. I feel confident that now is the right time, as we have strong leadership teams across the world."

Under his rein, Xiaomi became the number one smartphone brand without any advertising money, said Jain in his note. It overthrew Samsung, which had a stronger hold on the Indian market back then. Manu Jain has been instrumental in not only helping the brand cross its revenue milestones but in shaping the brand's image.

How Manu Kumar Jain became the face of Xiaomi India

He was one of the first employees in India, who worked from home to build the brand. He soon became the face of the brand in India, who featured in many consumer-facing campaigns. Not only did this help Xiaomi win consumer trust, it helped Jain build his personal brand.

He was a part of Xiaomi's Diwali advertisement in 2021.

In a fun collaboration, Jain partnered with OTT giant Amazon Prime to interview The Family Man's Srikant Tiwari, which is played by actor Manoj Bajpayee.

Jain was also approached by Global Creator Nas Daily for an interview. Nas called him 'The Smartphone Man of India' who sold 200 million smartphones across the country.

Further, to stay connected with his target audience, Jain featured in a few tech reviews.

Manu Kumar Jain: The Personal Brand

By being at the forefront of the company, Jain has also built his personal brand. His own YouTube channel 'Manu Kumar Jain' boasts of 137k followers, which revolves around tech reviews. He has been reviewing various Xiaomi Group smartphones.

On Instagram, Jain has accumulated 623k followers. He is a verified CxO who uses his Instagram to connect with younger people by reviewing phones, talking about dogs and shares updates on his general meet-and-greet with prominent personalities of India.

Jain is also active on Twitter, where he has gathered 523k followers. On the blue platform, Jain shares corporate advice on how to build a strong team. He is also a sports buff and often shares his views on cricket, football and other sports.

Strong teams can achieve anything. But what defines a strong team?

I believe 5 things:
1) Shared vision & a common goal
2) Diversity of skills
3) Diversity in thoughts
4) Trust & respect for each other
5) Ability to work under pressure & being together in tough conditions#Team

— Manu Kumar Jain (@manukumarjain) January 27, 2023

On corporate-facing platform LinkedIn, Jain has been talking about team building, Indian culture, Xiaomi business learning and corporate lessons. He has successfully built a brand on LinkedIn, where he boasts of 441k followers.

From doing tech reviews to starting his own channel, Jain has become a brand of his own.

Announcing his future plans, Jain said that he will be taking some time-off before rejoining the Indian startup ecosystem with “another fulfilling challenge."