‘Strike the east and clear the north’ but only accounts for 5% of the market share, Apple uses the familiar ‘trick’ to swallow the world’s most populous market

Tram Ho

‘Đánh đông dẹp bắc’ nhưng chỉ chiếm 5% thị phần, Apple dùng ‘chiêu’ quen thuộc quyết nuốt trọn thị trường đông dân nhất thế giới - Ảnh 1.

Opening the first Apple Store in India

Tim Cook just opened the first Apple Store in India on April 18 as the US manufacturer wants to step up the battle with Samsung in the growing high-end smartphone market in the big economy. 2nd in Asia.

CEO Tim Cook’s visit to the financial capital Mumbai has another purpose: to accelerate the completion of production lines in India as the company wants to reduce its dependence on China.

India has just overtaken China to become the most populous country in the world, but its market share here is just under 5%. India is currently the third largest smartphone market in the world.

However, Apple’s market share has grown rapidly in value as it continuously challenges Samsung in the premium phone segment. Apple accounts for 18% of the revenue market share in India, second only to Samsung (22%), according to Counterpint Research.

Hundreds of people lined up outside to witness the moment CEO Tim Cook opened the glass door of the new store on April 18, including a boy wearing a T-shirt with the words “future CEO of Apple” and a The teenager drew a portrait of Tim Cook in hopes of getting the famous CEO’s autograph.

This is India’s first Apple Store ,” said Shijo, 31, who flew in from the southern state of Kerala for the opening ceremony. “ Today is a big day. It has come true. I am delighted to be here in person .”

For the past 6 years, Shijo has worked at an authorized Apple service center where Apple devices are repaired. He lists all the Apple products he owns, only missing the Apple TV. Shijo said he was able to buy all these expensive items by paying with a credit card.

‘Đánh đông dẹp bắc’ nhưng chỉ chiếm 5% thị phần, Apple dùng ‘chiêu’ quen thuộc quyết nuốt trọn thị trường đông dân nhất thế giới - Ảnh 2.

Apple got serious with the campaign to capture the Indian market

Apple has just ‘booted up’ in India ,” said Prabhu Ram, head of industrial research at CyberMedia Research. ” They’re making strides, year-over-year growth is amazing but just 3-4 years ago they were only 1% market share .”

Ram estimates Apple’s market share in India will reach 6% this year thanks to the sale of about 8 million iPhones. According to Counterpint, iPhone 13 is the best-selling high-end phone model (over $ 365) here in 2022.

The high-end segment, which has a small market share but high revenue, will be where they increase market share, ” Ram said, adding that the online store is a key driver of Apple’s growth in India. but brick-and-mortar stores help them reach new customers. The growth of “buy now pay later” or pay by installments is also driving Indians to buy expensive models.

Apple has always been a coveted brand, it’s just that the pricing doesn’t match the taste of Indian consumers ,” said Prachir Singh, an analyst at Counterpint Research. However, the company can further reduce the price once the iPhone is manufactured in India, which means avoiding about 20% of the tax.

‘Đánh đông dẹp bắc’ nhưng chỉ chiếm 5% thị phần, Apple dùng ‘chiêu’ quen thuộc quyết nuốt trọn thị trường đông dân nhất thế giới - Ảnh 3.

Apple’s market share in India is the lowest among the top 5 largest smartphone markets in the world.

According to Pew Research Center, US tech companies are attracted to India’s 1.4 billion people, of which about 66-100 million are in the middle class. However, success here has not been easy as Netflix is ​​still struggling to find the right price and Amazon is embroiled in a long dispute with Reliance Industries over a retail chain that has gone bankrupt.

Shake hands with local “powers”, receive incentives from the government – Apple has too many advantages

The most successful foreign companies here have one thing in common: they have a good relationship with India’s most powerful conglomerate, Reliance Industries. With this in mind, Tim Cook had private meetings with RI Chairman Mukesh Ambani and Tata Group chairman N. Chandarasekaran on April 17.

These corporations certainly play an important role in Apple’s growth in India. Apple’s new 20,000-square-foot store is located in an upscale shopping mall owned by Reliance, which also owns India’s largest mobile network (by subscriptions), Jio.

Meanwhile, Tata supplies Apple components, and its Croma electronics stores sell Apple products. The second Apple Store in India opened on April 20 in New Delhi.

The role of Indian corporations will be huge with Apple’s overall growth in India ,” Singh said. While not yet a major consumer market for Apple devices, India is becoming increasingly important as an alternative manufacturing location in Asia, alongside Vietnam.

Indian central and local government officials are trying to ease policy, pledging support to convince Apple, Samsung and other electronics manufacturers to invest in new factories.

India exported $10 billion worth of mobile phones in the financial year ended March 31. Industry officials say the sector employs about 750,000 direct and indirect workers.

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Source : Genk