CMF: Brand Overview
CMF stands for Color, Material, and Finish which is pretty peculiar. However, these terms are broadly represented in their products. Their first offerings, the CMF Buds/Pro, and CMF GaN charger came in fancy colors. This sub-brand of the British electronics company Nothing was announced in August 2023, nearly three years after the founding of its parent company on 16 October 2020. Given the history, the hype for Nothing, and CMF by extension, was huge right As the main goal of the brand was to offer quality products at an affordable price, they shifted their focus to markets like India where the customers want exactly that. Once the brand arrived in India, it was only a matter of time before it entered Nepal too.
CMF in Nepal
There was an agreement between Nepal’s largest business conglomerate CG and Nothing on October 31, 2023. However, it was unclear whether or not CMF was included in that deal. Fortunately, CMF did enter the Nepali market alongside its parent company. The brand’s products were available in the grey market before the deal. CG Digital began selling some existing CMF products such as the Buds Pro and Watch Pro. The first batch of products to formally launch in Nepal were CMF Phone 1, CMF Buds Pro 2, and CMF Watch Pro 2. A noteworthy detail is that these products were launched on July 8, 2024, alongside the rest of the world. This meant that we got to experience these products on the same day as people in other countries.
CMF Earbuds in Nepal
CMF Earbuds made their debut with the CMF Buds Pro. It arrived with 10mm crystal polymer + polyurethane sound drivers, 45dB noise cancellation, and an IP54 rating. Launched at the price of NPR 8,999, this first TWS couldn’t quite a wonder, given that, the earbuds market in Nepal is super super competitive. Then, CMF introduced the Buds Pro 2 which brings some upgrades over the original Buds Pro. The main highlight becomes the rotating dial. Which can be customized for adjusting volume or music control (play/pause/next) or activating noise cancellation. And it’s priced at NPR 9,599 which is again higher than that in India. As such, CMF has to fix its pricing games otherwise, competing in this segment is gonna be tough as pricing is the primary factor in the Nepalese TWS market.