Apple, the Cupertino, California-based electronics maker plans 500 ‘iOS’ stores in India, in its first major push that will include moving into smaller towns and cities. The company has been in the country since 2011, but its phones have not gained as much popularity as its Korean rival Samsung that dominates the Indian phone market. The company sold one million phones in India in the year ending September 2014, and expects the volume to triple this year.
The Economic Times reported that Apple has “tentatively approved” the expansion proposal and will give a final go-ahead very soon, defining all the parameters and phases of expansion. “These new stores will be smaller in size and could range from 300-600 sq ft against the over 2,000 sq ft size of existing stores in bigger cities.” A franchise model is likely to be adopted and could be spearheaded by Redington, one of its distributors in India. Apple is also expected to increase spending for direct advertising in India, apart from publicity undertaken by its distributors.
