Apple CEO Tim Cook says India is an exciting market and a major focus for the company

After his recent visit to India to launch the first Apple Retail Stores in the country, Apple CEO Tim Cook said India is an exciting market and a major focus for Apple. During Apple's earnings call, Cook said "I was there to see it for myself, and I couldn't have been more delighted by the excitement and enthusiasm of the customers, developers, creators and team members I got to spend time with.” 

India is a growing market for iPhones and other Apple hardware and services over the last few years. In 2022, iPhones crossed 4 per cent of the overall smartphone shipments in the country, up from a mere 1 per cent in 2019. This number could cross 5 per cent in 2023.

Cook said, "Looking at the business in India, we did set a quarterly record, grew very strong, double digits year-over-year. So, it was quite a good quarter for us, taking a step back, India is an incredibly exciting market. It's a major focus for us. I was just there, and the Dynamism in the market, the vibrancy is unbelievable. Over time, we've been expanding our operations there to serve more customers, and three years ago, we launched the Apple Store online, and then, as you just mentioned, we launched two stores just a few weeks ago, and they're off to a great start, one in Mumbai and one in Delhi.

"We've got a number of channel partners in the country as well that we're partnering with, and we're very happy with how that's going overall. Overall, I couldn't be more delighted and excited by the enthusiasm I'm seeing for the brand there. There are a lot of people coming into the middle class, and I really feel that India is at a tipping point, and it's great to be there,” he added.

During Cook’s second visit to India to launch the Mumbai and Delhi Apple Retail Stores, he also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi where he committed to growth and investment across India. Cook also had meetings with IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar. Apple had created over 100,000 jobs in the country and intends to double the same soon.

Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal 2023 second quarter ended April 1, 2023 with a quarterly revenue of $94.8 billion, down 3 percent year over year. However, the quarter’s performance was better than Apple’s expectations as Apple has set an all-time record for Services and a March quarter record for iPhone. 

Cook said, “We were particularly pleased with the performance we saw in emerging markets and achieved all-time records in Mexico, Indonesia, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the UAE, as well as a number of March quarter records, including in Brazil, Malaysia and India."

Also read: Apple's retail foray in India: How will it affect the tech behemoth's fortunes?

Also read: Apple’s first retail store in India is its most sustainable outlet yet