Apple’s online store goes live in India next month

According to reports, people familiar with the matter said today that Apple plans to set up an online store in India for the first time next month to break the situation of relying on third-party retailers to sell iPhone and other products.

The person familiar with the matter said that the Apple India online store will be launched before the “Diwali” in India. There were reports in January this year that Apple postponed the launch date of the Indian online store to August to September, hoping to have more time to complete the back-end work. Regarding the timing of the launch, it was reported that it would be selected on a holiday to coincide with the launch of the new mobile phone.

In February of this year, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that Apple will open an online store in India sometime this year and open its first physical retail store in 2021.

It was previously reported that Apple has chosen to open its first retail store in India at the Maker Maxity Mall in Mumbai. According to people familiar with the matter, Apple leased about 20,000 to 25,000 square feet of space in the shopping center, spread over three floors.

People familiar with the matter said today that after the opening of its first retail store in Mumbai, Apple also plans to open a second physical retail store in the southern Indian city of Bangalore.

The Indian smartphone market has developed rapidly and has now become the second largest market in the world. But because there is no retail store of its own, Apple’s smartphone market share in India is minimal. Of course, another reason is that most people in India still cannot afford iPhones. Statistics show that most smartphones in the Indian market are priced at US$150 or less.