The biggest companies in the world wish to operate in all the most lucrative markets in the world in order to boost their revenues and at this point of time, India is perhaps the most attractive market due to its status as the fastest growing economy in the world. Global tech giant Apple Inc. had also tried to enter the country plenty of times but could not do so due to a regulation that stipulated that foreign retailers had to source 30% of their products locally. However, that regulation has been lifted as part of far reaching economic reforms instituted by the Indian government and Apple is now all set to enter India with their own stores rather than using the services of resellers in order to offer their globally renowned products to Indian customers.
According to a report on Fortune,"Apple, which currently sells its iPhones, iMacs, and iPads through resellers, to set up its own shops in India, ending months of uncertainty for the California-based company that had first applied for store licenses in January. India is the world's fastest growing large smartphone market with sales expected to rise over 25% this year. For Apple, which has less than a 2% share in the smartphone market in the country, gaining a bigger footprint in India is crucial at a time when growth in China and the U.S. has stalled." The company had earlier tried to dodge the sourcing issue by stating that their products fulfilled the 'cutting edge technology' criteria but the regulators did not budge. However, the situation has changed now with the discontinuation of those regulations.
The report went on to state, "India has been lobbying Apple and its partner Foxconn to begin manufacturing in the country as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's agenda to bring in foreign manufacturers to India to create millions of jobs.The announcement comes a month after Apple boss Tim Cook met Modi to discuss Apple's plans for retail and manufacturing in India as part of his first-ever trip to the country."
