Economics of OnePlus

In February 2016, Carl Pei, co-founder of the Shenzen-based technology start-up, OnePlus, announced that the company’s new flagship smartphone OnePlus 3 would be launched by the end of the second quarter (June) of 2016. He said the company’s fourth smartphone model with its new design would captivate young tech enthusiasts, much like its predecessors. Since its debut in 2013, OnePlus had grabbed the headlines for delivering smartphones with flagship specifications at significantly lower prices than that of its rivals. The co-founders of OnePlus Peter Lau (Lau) and Pei emphasized the “Never Settle” motto of OnePlus, which aimed at providing the best possible technology to users globally by creating elegantly designed devices with premium build quality and high performance hardware. The business model of OnePlus was built around razor-thin margins. The company employed an unconventional invite-only system that limited buyers to those who had received an invite from the company directly or from someone who had already purchased the device... .