In a first, Apple Inc. is eyeing corporate resellers to give a fillip to the sales of its product line-up of smartphones, tablets and notebooks in India.
In the face of low-key sales of its latest iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus in India, Apple is looking to channel its focus on enterprise businesses in the country. The latest iPhones are experiencing lower-than-expected sales in India primarily due to its steep launch price.
This scenario, as we reported, prompted Apple to push out a buyback plan to entice consumers.
Now, the Cupertino-based company is targeting institutions and corporates in the region to open a new channel for the sales of iPads, iMacs and iPhones. Apple sees India as a promising market for its products and, therefore, is pushing sales efforts in the country.
To boost sales, Apple has now reportedly appointed more than 130 corporate resellers across India. These dedicated resellers are also located in tier 2 and tier 3 cities like Bhopal, Agra, Kozhikode, Aizawl, Varanasi, Mathura and Jamshedpur. This information comes courtesy of two senior trade partners in the company per an Economic Times report.
"Earlier, the Apple distributors and premium resellers were doing enterprise sales, which was not getting dedicated focus. Hence, Apple felt the need to appoint exclusive corporate resellers for India the way it has done for bigger global markets," revealed one of the trade partners.
Moreover, Apple is allegedly looking to increase this network of resellers from 130 to 200 by March 2016 per the trade partners. They also let on that Apple anticipated nearly 15 percent to 20 percent of its sales revenue in India to be generated by the enterprise business in the country. This move, per the trade partners, would help safeguard Apple against any potential slowdown in the consumer space.
Apple is also eyeing the creation of a different dealer network meant for the education sphere. Via this network, Apple intends to offer not only product, but also integrated software solutions to educational institutions i.e. schools and colleges.
