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Kolkata|New Delhi: Apple chief executive Tim Cook is likely to visit India this month for the launch of the iPhone maker’s first company-owned store in the country and also for discussing with key ministers strategic issues such as manufacturing expansion and exports from India, said people with knowledge of the matter.
If the visit does take place, it could possibly include a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said the people. Cook had met the PM on his previous visit to the country in 2016. The US technology firm’s headquarters in Cupertino, California, is finalising Cook’s India itinerary and the launch date of the store in Mumbai will be decided accordingly, they said.
The company’s senior vice-president of retail and people, Deirdre O’Brien, is also likely to accompany Cook this time, said people in the know. On his first visit in 2016, Cook had interacted with chief executives and Bollywood superstars, and seen a cricket match, besides reviewing Apple’s India operations.
On Wednesday, Apple unveiled the facade of its Mumbai store coming up at the Jio World Drive Mall which is likely to be launched in the second half of this month. The store design is inspired by the kaali-peeli taxi art unique to Mumbai.
The Mumbai store will be quickly followed by the launch of a store at Delhi’s Select Citywalk mall, also likely this month, according to industry executives privy to the information. The Delhi store too is ready, including the façade, they said.
An email sent to Apple remained unanswered till press time.
India has consistently been one of the best-performing markets for Apple for more than six years. In the quarter to December 2022, the company achieved record overall sales in the country.
Cook told analysts in February that India is a “hugely exciting market” and a “major focus”. “We brought the online store there in 2020. We will soon bring Apple retail there,” he said. “We are putting a lot of emphasis on the market. There’s been a lot done — from financing options and trade-ins — to make products more affordable and give people more options to buy.”
Apple sold about 6.7 million units of iPhones in India in 2022, up from 4.8 million units in 2021 and 2.7 million units in 2020, as per IDC data. The company assembles iPhones, including the latest iPhone 14, in the country through three Taiwanese contract manufacturers — Foxconn, Wistron and Pegatron — in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. All three manufacturers are approved under the government’s production-linked incentive scheme for smartphones.ET recently reported that Apple became the first company to export smartphones worth $1 billion from India in a single month in December 2022.
Navkendar Singh, associate vice president, IDC India, said while Apple has taken time to set up its retail stores in India, it makes sense now more than ever. “The Indian consumer is maturing and spending more, especially at the premium end, which makes India the big growth market in the next decade for Apple — across product and service categories,” he said.
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