Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is betting big on India. To strengthen its presence in the Indian smartphone market and expand its reach in the APAC region, the Cupertino giant is set to launch its physical stores in the country this year. As a result, Apple began hiring employees for its retail stores at various locations in the country, the Financial Times reported.
The idea to set up Apple retail stores in India first emerged in 2015. However, it got delayed for various reasons, such as the government’s mandatory 30% sourcing norms, Covid-19 pandemic, and others.
It is important to note that as of December 2022, Apple has 522 retail stores across 25 countries and regions worldwide.
Apple hiring in India
Currently, there are 12 new job openings for ‘Apple Retail’ at Apple India, including in-store leaders, market leaders, managers, and senior managers. Interestingly, some of the positions have already been filled. The job opportunities are expected to grow in the near future.
Apple’s new job listings include full-time and part-time positions directly referring to the Apple Retail Store in various locations across India.
At least five people from Mumbai and Delhi have already been hired for the upcoming Apple Stores. They made their hiring announcements on the social media network LinkedIn.
Apple has created nearly 50,000 direct jobs in India through its contract manufacturers and component suppliers Foxconn, Wistron, and Pegatron since the govt’s PLI scheme came into effect in August 2021.
Apple retail stores in India
In 2020, the first Apple store was launched in India, albeit online. During the annual shareholder meeting, the CEO Tim Cook hinted at the possibility of opening an offline retail outlet in the country, saying, “I don’t want somebody else to run the brand for us.” This was said in reference to the third-party retailers at brick-and-mortar stores selling iPhones to Indian customers.
Apple had initially planned to launch its first offline retail store in India in 2021. However, all plans were put on hold due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to The Economic Times, the Cupertino behemoth will open a 22,000-square-foot store in Mumbai between January and March 2023. The company will also open a 10,000 to 12,000-square-foot store in New Delhi, along with several other retail stores across the country. The launch dates are still unknown, though.
Made-In-India iPhones: Is Apple manufacturing or just assembling?
Apart from setting up its retail stores in India, Apple has also started manufacturing and assembling iPhones locally. The company has been investing heavily in the Indian smartphone market for the last five years.
It was 2017 when Apple first started assembling iPhones (iPhone SE) in India. In September 2022, the company shifted the production of iPhone 14 from China to India. Its global partner Foxconn is currently making the device in the Sriperumbudur facility near Chennai.
It is important to note that these so-called “made-in-India” iPhones are not actually being manufactured in the country but only assembled. The iPhone manufacturers Foxconn, Wistron, and Pegatron purchase various components of iPhones from several other countries and then assemble them together in India.
Therefore, the price of the made in India iPhones is unlikely to drop anytime soon. The components required in the iPhone would still needed to be imported from other countries, forcing Apple to pay import duties.
However, it is important to note that Apple is making every effort to capitalise on the Indian government’s Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme. Backed By PLI Scheme, Apple is expected to manufacture iPhones worth Rs 47,000 crore in India in FY23, a nearly 5-fold increase from the previous year.
In a nutshell
Apple’s decision to distance itself from China is motivated primarily by political reasons (US-China trade war) and the need to cut costs in the face of challenging economic conditions and rising interest rates. India will soon overtake China and Vietnam to become the world’s biggest smartphone manufacturing hub. The cheapest manufacturing costs, cheaper labor costs, rising population, and a sizable untapped smartphone market make India the most lucrative market in the world. Therefore, global companies like Apple, Samsung, and other Chinese OEMs are betting big on India to expand their businesses.
The demand for iPhones in India has risen in recent years, although not many people cannot afford to buy them due to the high price tags.
Now let’s understand what makes iPhones more expensive in India than in the United States and many other countries.
The 22% customs duty and 18% GST on iPhones make them more expensive in India than in many other countries. For example, the base price of iPhone 14 Pro is just Rs 90,233 in the country. However, an additional Rs 19,851 (22% duty) and Rs 19,815 (18% GST) bump up the MRP of the iPhone 14 Pro to Rs 129,900 (~$1,576) in India.
Currently, Apple is India’s top premium smartphone brand, followed by Samsung. However, it is yet to make a place among the top five brands in the overall category.
