Chinese smartphone makers ZTE is planning to open more than 20 retail locations in an effort to boost smartphone sales.
According to Bloomberg, the company is planning to open approximately 20 stores in major Chinese cities as well as one store each in Germany, Russia and Mexico.
ZTE CEO Adam Zeng said the stores will help the company “lift brand awareness while spurring sales in the areas we value the most.” The company is aiming to bump its smartphone sales from 56 million last year to 70 million in 2016, Bloomberg said.
For the quarter ending in March, ZTE was the sixth-largest smartphone vendor, Bloomberg said.
The news coincides with ZTE’s Thursday launch of its latest flagship handset, the AXON 7.
The AXON 7 comes with a 5.5-inch AMOLED display, a 2.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, a 20 mp rear camera, an 8 mp front camera, dual stereo speakers, 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. The premium model also offers 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage.
The device also supports Daydream, Google’s platform for high performance mobile VR.
The standard version of the handset is priced around $500, with a basic model available for about $440 and a premium model priced at around $625.
ZTE said it is launching the AXON 7 in China first and will follow up with international launches in the United States, Europe and other regions soon.