India is set to get its first Apple Store. Apple Inc. will debut in India in partnership with Tata-owned consumer electronics chain Croma, which will host Apple at six of its locations, according to The Economic Times.
“We are proud to partner Apple to launch the Apple Store in India and extremely bullish about it,” said Avijit Mitra, chief executive officer of Infiniti Retail, which owns Croma. “These stores will be modeled on the global design and will offer the best experience to consumers, showcasing the entire range of Apple products.”
The Apple space will be set up at five Croma stores in
Mumbai – Malad, Juhu, Oberoi Mall, Phoenix Mall and Ghatkopar – and one store
in Bengaluru in Jayanagar. The stores are expected to open by Diwali next
month.
The stores will feature the trademark design of Apple’s global stores. Sales
staff will also be trained by the company.
Presently, Apple sells its products in India through premium resellers who run exclusive brand stores under the franchise model. Devices are also available at multi-brand mobile and consumer electronics retail chains and some of the larger neighbourhood phone stores.
Apple’s plans to set up its own stores in the country have
been held back because of mandatory local-sourcing norms for single-brand
foreign direct investment in retail. Partnering with Croma gives the company the
opportunity to control the consumer experience without jumping through bureaucratic
hoops.
Apple has significantly increased its retail presence in India over the past year as the country has become one of the fastest growing markets for its products.
It has also accelerated the launch of new phones. Sales of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will start on October 16, just three weeks after the US. It also plans to launch Apple Watch in India by Diwali.
According to market tracker Counter-Point Research, Apple sold 1.7 million iPhones in India between October 2014 and September 2015, the company’s financial year, compared with 1.1 million units in the year-earlier period.
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