22 Brands Cannot Open Shops Near First Apple Store
India's First Apple retail stores to launch in Mumbai and Delhi. Watch the video for all the details.
Apple announced the launch of new stores earlier in April. This is the first time Apple is opening its flagship store in India. Its first flagship retail store in Mumbai will open on 18th April 2023. The 22,000-sq.ft. flagship store is coming at the Jio World Drive mall. It will be followed by a second outlet in Delhi on 20th April 2023. It will be in Select Citywalk Mall in Saket and will spread over 10,000 sq.ft. Both stores will have spaces for informative classes by creative professionals like photographers and meetings. There will be space for new screens and hardware. Apple had launched its first online store in India in 2020 and was supposed to launch its physical stores soon after but plans were stalled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. India is an attractive market for Apple in the long run. The company plans to make more of its products in India due to the ongoing geopolitical tensions with China. As per the agreement, 22 "competing brands" cannot open shops or have advertisements near Apple's first store.
Brands including Amazon, Facebook, Google, LG, Microsoft, Sony, Twitter, Bose, Dell, Devialet, Foxconn, Garmin, Hitachi, HP, HTC, IBM, Intel, Lenovo, Nest, Panasonic and Toshiba cannot open stores in the "exclusive" Apple zone. However, the names of 21 companies have been announced. Only 1 company name is missing. People assume this brand to be Samsung as it is the toughest competitor of Apple. The agreement also highlights that Apple has a lease for over 11 years with a 15 per cent rent escalation provision every three years with the mall in Mumbai. The company will also reportedly pay a "minimum guarantee" of Rs 42 lakh per month, plus 2 percent of the revenue share for three years. After that, the company will pay 2.5 percent of the revenue share. Till now, Apple has over 500 retail stores across 25 countries. Its offline stores are driven by high-trained Apple executives. The company refers to them as Apple Genius.
