Counterpoint analyst Shubham Singh said: “Premiumization has started in the world’s second largest smartphone market and Apple has again got the timing right to benefit from this trend through its devices and financing offers.”
This is all good news for Apple, of course. But what might it mean for your company and what lessons can you pick up from Apple’s achievements here?
For most of us, those lessons are limited.
It was the sheer scale of Apple’s business that helped encourage India to offer the government subsidies and support that are enabling business extension there. Smaller, less powerful companies won’t be able to access the same degree of cooperation. Still, India remains incredibly focused on building up its tech industry, so even smaller start-ups might experience some positive results if they choose to move business there.
Building in, building out, building up
Apple isn’t just in the device business. It’s also in the accessories, services, and software businesses and has a pretty good track record for convincing its tribes of happy customers to purchase multiple products and services over time. Apple’s foothold with iPhone sales in India will become something more significant over time.
Like so many economies, India is also on an inexorable journey to digital transformation. One of India’s bigger software businesses is Zoho, a company that literally makes the software used by so many companies worldwide to digitize their business. As new tech businesses get into India, you’ll see them realize the big opportunity that digital-first processes always unleash in new markets. And while India’s tech economy is expected to grow at a slower rate in 2024, (thanks to global instability), it is still expected to become a $253.9 billion (net) business by the end of the year.
