Apple opens first store in India
India as an alternative to China: Apple plans "major expansion" in the country

Apple has opened its first store in India and is planning a "major expansion" in the country. Group CEO Tim Cook personally opened the store in Mumbai and hundreds of people attended the opening. Apple is not only hoping to drive consumer spending in India, but also sees further potential for manufacturing plants and operations to be less dependent on China. The strict Covid lockdowns in China have left the company in trouble as contract manufacturers working locally have been crippled. As a result, Apple has long been looking for alternatives, and iPhone manufacturers Foxconn, Wistron and Pegatron are now producing Apple phones in India for export and the domestic market.
Apple is visibly gaining market share in India and could expand it in the current year. Currently, the company has a four percent market share in India, but according to data analyst Counterpoint Research, that could rise to five percent. That's still a fraction of its market share in China, which was around 22 percent in the final quarter of 2022. But India seems like a sensible additional foothold for the tech company, both as a manufacturing base and as a sales market.
The opening of an Apple store in India had been repeatedly postponed due to applicable investment rules and pandemic-related restrictions. Apple has already been offering its products online in India since 2020. But the opening of the first store is an important step for the company to expand its presence in India and reduce its dependence on China.
