Ahead of Apple Saket launch, Tim Cook to meet PM Modi today

A day after the grand launch of Apple’s first retail store in India, CEO Tim Cook is set to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Wednesday, as per a LiveMint report.

Cook will also reportedly meet union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and Rajeev Chandrasekhar ahead of Apple’s second Indian store opening at Saket on Thursday. However, the prime minister’s office or the Indian government is yet to confirm the reports of the meeting.

On Tuesday, Apple opened its flagship store in India at Mumbai’s Jio World Drive Mall Bandra Kurla Complex. At Apple BKC, the company also has a service centre called Genius Bay to provide professional troubleshooting advice.

The new stores are a clear signal of the company’s expansion plans in India. In September, Apple announced it would start making its iPhone 14 in India, the world’s second-largest smartphone market. The news was hailed as a win for Modi’s government, which has pushed for ramping up local manufacturing ever since he came to power in 2014.

Currently, India makes close to 13 million iPhones every year, up from less than 5 million three years ago, according to Counterpoint Research. Last week, India’s Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said the government was in regular touch with Apple to support their business here and that the company had plans to have 25% of their global production come out of India in the next five years.

Apple Saket is spread over 8,417.83 sqft, while BKC store sprawls across 20,000 sqft. Notably, despite the difference in area size, the Delhi store is leased at the same rate as the Mumbai shop, as per documents shared by CRE Matrix.

In an effort to tailor the store to the local culture, BKC outlet is designed around Mumbai’s iconic Kaali Peeli taxis, while the Saket store is themed on Delhi’s many gates, each signifying a new chapter to the city’s storied past.

Earlier, Apple’s products were sold via resellers and e-commerce sites such as Flipkart and Amazon.