Apple’s first retail store in India is named Apple BKC, opening soon

Apple will be opening its first physical retail store in India, located in the financial capital of the country, Mumbai. This is a significant milestone for the technology giant as India is one of the fastest-growing smartphone markets in the world.

The store, named Apple BKC, is housed in the Reliance Jio World Drive mall, which falls under the Bandra Kurla Complex business and residential district; hence the name Apple BKC. It is still unclear when the Mumbai store will open doors to customers, as it mentions “coming soon” on its retail page.

Hello Mumbai. We are getting ready to welcome you aboard our first store in India. And raring to see where your creativity takes you at Apple BKC.

Apple bkc

Back in February 2020, Apple CEO Tim Cook mentioned his plans to open a retail store in the country by 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, imposed hurdles in the physical retail launch. The Indian government had strict regulations on foreign investment that prevented Apple from opening its retail stores in India until 2019 when the government eased the rules.

In September 2020, Apple started operating its online store in India. This allowed customers to purchase Apple products directly from Apple without requiring any authorized reseller in the middle. Prior to this, Apple products in India were sold exclusively through domestic partners and e-commerce sites like Amazon and Flipkart.

India is one of the fastest-growing smartphone markets in the world. It is poised to have one billion smartphone users by 2026. Despite this, Apple has struggled to gain a foothold in the Indian market due to its high prices compared to local competitors. The company holds a 4.5 percent share of the Indian smartphone market as of last year. With the retail stores coming into play, Apple hopes to increase its share percentage.