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Nearly two decades after Apple entered India, the iPhone-maker is ready to open its first set of retail stores in the South Asian market.<\/p>\n
Apple will open Apple BKC<\/a>, its Mumbai store, on April 18, and its Delhi outlet Apple Saket on April 20, the company said in a statement Tuesday.<\/p>\n Apple has long explored expansion into India, but curbed its enthusiasm because the market for premium smartphones and laptops remains tiny in the country. Even through India is the second-largest internet market, most smartphones that sell in the country are priced under $200. <\/span><\/p>\n India currently contributes little to Apple\u2019s topline, but the iPhone maker has said in the past that it\u2019s bullish about its prospects in the country.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThese new retail locations mark a significant expansion in India that will offer great new ways to browse, discover, and buy Apple products with exceptional service and experiences for customers,\u201d Apple said in a statement.<\/p>\n Apple has been aggressively hiring employees for its stores in India in recent months, according to recruitment posts. The company, which\u00a0launched its online store in India in 2020<\/a>, had initially planned to\u00a0debut the first retail outlet in 2021<\/a>\u00a0but delayed those plans after COVID struck.<\/p>\n The iPhone-maker is also pushing to turn India into a key hardware manufacturing hub for the company.<\/p>\n Apple\u2019s contract manufacturing partners, Foxconn and Wistron, have ramped up local assembling for iPhone and other Apple gadgets in India in recent quarters. In a report last year, JP Morgan analysts estimated that Apple would\u00a0expand its manufacturing capacity in India<\/a>\u00a0to produce 25% of all iPhones by 2025.<\/p>\n