Samsung India is reportedly cutting its workforce as its consumer electronics business faces heat due to rising input costs, weaker sales, and margin pressure.
The company has begun handing out termination letters in small batches, with 80-100 executives in its television and home appliance divisions asked to leave so far, the Economic Times reported, citing multiple industry executives who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The cuts have affected director-level officials and team leads at the headquarters, besides branch and area managers working across Samsung’s operating branches.
“Up to 25% of its sales and marketing workforce in the electronics business including off-roll employees hired through manpower agencies, could be affected,” said one of the executives cited in the report.
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For now, Smartphone business spared
For now, Samsung’s smartphone division has been kept outside the restructuring, given that it is the company’s biggest business in India. A recovery in phone sales could have a significant impact on the Korean major’s overall financial performance in the country.
The company has 550-600 executives in its domestic electronics sales team, apart from a much larger sales organisation dedicated to smartphones. An employee affected by the layoffs told ET that termination letters have been issued every day over the past few days, in small batches, with employees being asked to leave without serving their notice periods.
Samsung is offering severance equivalent to three months’ salary, along with an additional month’s pay for every year of service.
The pressure on the India business has also been aggravated by the rupee’s nearly 10% decline through FY26. Although the currency remained largely stable during the current fiscal year after hitting a trough in May, Samsung’s phones and most of its electronic products have become more expensive, affecting sales growth.
The wider Indian electronics industry is also facing slower sales and margin growth this year. Industry estimates put the decline in smartphone volumes in the country at 11-12% year-on-year.
Phones account for three-fourths of Samsung’s revenue in India. The company has also failed to make significant headway in the high-value air-conditioner segment despite an aggressive push this year. Rising raw material prices have added to the pressure on its consumer electronics business.
Branch networks squeezed to cut costs
Samsung has meanwhile begun consolidating its branch network as part of efforts to lower costs. Several offices are being merged, including Ranchi with Patna, Delhi with Gurgaon, and Punjab with Chandigarh. The move has made some positions redundant, according to the executives cited by ET.
The company has seen some success at the premium end of the smartphone market. Its latest super-premium Galaxy Fold and Flip series have received a good response, even though phones priced at ₹1 lakh and above account for just 4% of the market by volume.
