Apple Saket: CEO Tim Cook officially opens the doors to Delhi store; view pics

On Thursday morning, a large crowd gathered at Delhi's Select Citywalk Mall in Saket to witness the opening of Apple's second official retail store in India. The tech giant's CEO, Tim Cook, welcomed customers and even took photos with fans before the store opened its doors at 10 am.

The Apple Saket store is located in South Delhi and features a unique design inspired by the many gates found throughout the city. However, the store is smaller than the first Apple Store opened in Jio World Drive at Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai just two days prior.

The Delhi store is about half the size of the Mumbai store, where Apple will reportedly pay a portion of total sales as rent or a minimum of Rs 40 lakh per month, according to news agency PTI. The Apple Saket store employs over 70 retail team members who come from 18 different states in India and collectively speak more than 15 languages.

During his visit to India, Mr Cook also met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the company's plans for investment and expansion in the country.

This is Mr Cook's first trip to India in seven years, and he is looking to replicate the success that Apple has had in China over the past 15 years by tapping into India's growing middle class and massive market potential. The company is also exploring the possibility of making India a home base for the production of millions of Apple devices.

In addition to his meeting with the Prime Minister, Mr Cook also met with Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar. During these meetings, he discussed the possibility of widening Apple's components supplier base in India and explored plans for a manufacturing facility and app design and development accelerator in Bengaluru.

Meanwhile, Cook tweeted about his Delhi visit. "What an incredible reception, Delhi, thank you! We’re delighted to welcome our customers to our newest store—Apple Saket," he said.

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