Oaxis Asia, a Singapore-based education startup selling digital products for children under the "myFirst" brand, is gearing up to expand its footprint in Thailand to capitalise on the growing market for child-based tech.
"Thailand is a promising market for the new segment category, which is technology for kids. The company offers electronic products with nice designs, light weight and safety functions for kids," said G-Jay Yong, founder and chief executive of Oaxis Asia.
According to him, Thailand has a lot of tech-savvy users and plenty of tourist attractions, suggesting there would be strong demand for the company's products.
The company recently launched its "myFirst Fone R1s" smartwatch in Thailand, as well as other IT products, including smart boards, smart 3D pens and headphones.
Fone R1s lets users listen to music and also tracks the user's location via a GPS system, said Mr Yong. The watch comes with an app that includes a safety control that won't allow SMS or WhatsApp messages to be sent to the watch, preventing spam or the receipt of messages from strangers.
The watch comes with a free roaming SIM card that can be used in 10 countries, including Thailand, with unlimited use for six months.
It displays the user's heart rate when conducting physical activities, along with a step counter. The smartwatch has an around the clock video call function for urgent contact with parents, as well as an emergency call function.
The company's headphones have been designed in such a way that the child can still hear external voices while wearing them, he said.
Pravit Chinprasert, managing director of Banleong Chin Inter, the country's sole distributor and importer of myFirst products, said his firm can see opportunity in the products' high quality and ability to fulfil parents' needs as they enable parents to protect and ensure the safety of their children while enhancing the kids' digital skills.
"Kid technology products are an emerging market in Thailand with some retailers starting to display these products specifically," said Mr Pravit.
The market for wearable devices for children is growing by between 200% and 300% annually, compared with double-digit growth for normal wearables which are approaching maturity.
Mr Pravit said that despite the economic turbulence, there is still demand among parents for the products for use by their children.
"We forecast that there is still continuing growth in IT and gadget products, especially smartwatches designed for specific targets," said Mr Pravit.
As Covid-19 infections are easing, people will be drawn to carry out more outdoor activities and myFirst products could be a solution for parents who are concerned about the safety of their children, he said.
The myFirst smartwatch could also be useful for elderly people, as their location could also be tracked by wearing one, said Mr Pravit.
