Mikey Campbell
Apple fans living in India might soon be treated to the Apple Store experience, as the company this week filed an application to open its own branded outlets in the South Asian country.
Secretary of India's Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Amitabh Kant, confirmed to the Economic Times on Wednesday local time that Apple's proposal was "just received" and is currently under review. India's recent decision to relax direct foreign investment regulations likely played a role in Apple's filing, as the company no longer faces strict product procurement and online sales rules, the report said.
The confirmation comes after years of rumors and speculation concerning an official Apple retail presence built to serve India's burgeoning marketplace. In October, the iPhone maker was said to be in talks with electronics chain Croma over a potential store-within-a-store concept to bolster regional operations, while Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Apple CEO Tim Cook to discuss potential investment opportunities in September.
Through its current network of authorized resellers, Apple last year crossed the $1 billion sales mark in India for the first time, according to data published by Registrar of Companies in November. For the three-month period ending in March 2015, sales were up 44 percent year over year, while net profits doubled.
As part of its global strategy, Apple is looking to expand into areas exhibiting a rise in middle- to upper-middle class earners, China being a prime example. Earlier this month, AppleInsider was first to report an upcoming push into Latin America that will see flagship and satellite Apple Stores open in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Peru. The report was confirmed by Apple three days later.
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12 Comments
I wonder if they'll get the store open in time for the 4" iPhone's intro.
Apple's application fee was 16 billion rupees, or about one US dollar.
Amitabh Kant said a store won't take long to have open, "Some straw, a couple cows..."
This could be a positive talking point in the upcoming Earnings Call, as India = Growth = Wall Street's priority.
On a recent trip to India, I was stunned by how ubiquitous Samsung was there, especially their high-end and larger screen size smartphones. Among business people and among people patronizing higher-end hotels, restaurants, and stores. Every single person seemed to have one. There were a handful of iPhones, almost always the the 6/6s or +. (I did see a fair number of Apple billboards though, which I had not seen when I was there a couple of years ago).
The general sense was that the iPhone was terribly overpriced, and that a high-end Android phone offered pretty much the same functionality. The 'ecosystem' argument did not play well, since co-offerings such as iTunes, App Store, and ApplePay are poorly developed or implemented in India.
With 3G ubiquitous now, and 4G being aggressively rolled out, the smartphone market is clearly taking off there. It will be a HUGE market. Apple can be successful, but it's not a gimme given the incumbency of Android. I predict it'll be a slog.
Can't wait to see how analysts will spin this as bearish for Apple's long-term prospects. Desperate grasping by a company that's run out of ideas?
That's carrect, they vill open a store in India.