Apple has finalized a short list of locations for its first retail store in India, according to people familiar with the plans, as the company redoubles its efforts in the world’s fastest-growing smartphone market.
The iPhone giant has zeroed in on several upscale sites in Mumbai, and plans to make a final decision in the next few weeks, The vetted spots are comparable to iconic Apple locations on Fifth Avenue in New York or Regent Street in London. Apple has been stopped from opening its own stores in the country because it doesn’t meet local sourcing requirements, but it’s shifting manufacturing into India and is in talks with the government about its retail expansion.
Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook has vowed to improve in the fast-growing market, especially as Apple loses ground in China. Manufacturing in India will also allow the company to sidestep 20 percent tariffs on imported phones, making its devices more competitive.
“India is a very important market in the long term,” Cook said after the company’s earnings report last week. “It’s a challenging market in the short term, but we’re learning a lot. We plan on going in there with sort of all of our might.”
Apple doesn’t break out its revenue from India since it’s such a minor part of the business. In the most recent quarter, the company generated 44 percent of revenue from the Americas and 18 percent from greater China. India is lumped in with the rest of Asia-Pacific, which altogether account for about 6 percent..
