Apple Doubles Market Share In India, With 3.2 Mn Units Shipped In 2020

Tech giant Apple has reportedly doubled its market share in India to 4% with more than 1.5 Mn iPhone units shipped to India in Q4 2020 (between October and December 2020 or Q3 FY2021). Compared to the same quarter in 2019, Apple’s shipment volumes to India have increased by 100%, making it the best quarter for Apple in India, according to a TechCrunch report.

Citing numbers from research firms Counterpoint and CyberMedia, the publication said that Apple improved the sale of iPhone 11, iPhone XR, iPhone 12 and the newer iPhone SE units, leading to an increased market share. Overall, the company shipped more than 3.2 Mn iPhones in 2020, translating to a 60% spike compared to 2019.

The growth coincides with the launch of Apple’s ecommerce store in India in September 2020. The online store added to Apple’s ambition to manufacture and sell in India at cheaper prices with better financing options, student discounts and direct customer support.

Apple Bets Bigger On ‘Make In India’

A key part of Apple’s strategy in India is to drive sales of older models in the market by boosting local manufacturing and passing on price savings through ecommerce offers for these older models.

Now reports suggest Apple is looking to further diversify the production of Mac, iPads, and iPhones by moving manufacturing from China and Taiwan to India and Vietnam. The company will start production of iPhone 12, 5G models, in India within the fourth quarter.

Even though the recent violent incident at Apple contract manufacturer Wistron’s plant has impacted the production of iPhones in India, the company assembles the latest iPhone 12 in India. Apple had also planned to hire 10,000 employees in order to facilitate the manufacturing and invested around INR 2,900 Cr in the plant.

It had started manufacturing phones in India for the first time in 2017, with the iPhone SE at Bengaluru’s Wistron facility. It was later expanded to another contract manufacturer, Foxconn’s plant in Chennai. Last year in October, Apple started manufacturing the iPhone XR locally in India.

Overall, Chinese smartphone brand Xiaomi is the biggest smartphone vendor in India with 26.2% market share, followed by South Korean giant Samsung (20.4%) and China’s Vivo (19%).