Cook is likely to preside over the opening of the twin
outlets in India's financial and political capital, people familiar with the
matter said, asking to remain anonymous discussing private plans. Apple said
Tuesday it'll open a store in Mumbai on April 18 and another in New Delhi on
April 20.
The trip comes seven years after the CEO's maiden visit in
2016 and coincides with the world's most valuable company hitting important
markers: India sales of iPhones reaching all-time high and annual iPhone export
from the country reaching billions of dollars. Apple is betting on India to
diversify its assembly operations beyond China amid strained Beijing-Washington
relations.
Cook is set to open Apple's first India store inside an
upscale mall in Mumbai's Bandra Kurla Complex, or BKC as the neighborhood is
called. A few days after that, he is set to unlock the doors of the New Delhi
store, in a high-end mall in the Saket neighborhood. That store's barricades
were lifted on Tuesday.
The two stores have been a long time in the making as
India's strict rules forbid global brands from opening own-brand outlets unless
they source a significant portion of the goods from within the country.
Apple didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comments
on Cook's visit.
The company opened its Indian online store in 2020. The
country is the world's second-largest smartphone market and among the
fastest-growing, but Apple's relatively high sticker prices are still a
deterrent in the nation of 1.4 billion where affordability plays a major role
in purchase decisions.
In between the two store inaugurals, Apple has sought a
meeting for Cook with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said one of the people.
Modi's government has been pushing for electronics manufacturing and has
offered billions of dollars in incentives to attract Apple's manufacturing
partners like Foxconn Technology Group and Pegatron.
On Apple earnings calls, Cook has stressed India's
importance as a market and production base. During the latest such conference,
Cook said Apple set “a quarterly revenue record and grew very strong double
digits year over year” in the country.
“India is a hugely exciting market for us and a major focus,”
Cook said on the call. “I'm very bullish on India.” © Bloomberg