Apple enters next retail phase with Bengaluru flagship retail store launch, signals deeper retail commitment in India

With Bengaluru alone contributing nearly 5% of India’s premium smartphone sales, the city is a natural choice for Apple’s next big retail push.

iPhone maker Apple is deepening its India bet with a new flagship store in Bengaluru’s Hebbal tech hub and another in Pune later this week, expanding beyond its Mumbai and Delhi outlets as part of a broader strategy to capture premium smartphone growth and cement the country’s role as a key manufacturing hub.

With Bengaluru alone contributing nearly 5% of India’s premium smartphone sales, the city is a natural choice for Apple’s next big retail push.

“Apple Hebbal will serve as a hub for local entrepreneurs and small business owners to connect with Apple’s dedicated Business Team who are in-store and ready to offer tailored guidance, device support, and tools to help small and medium-sized businesses grow,” Wendy Beckman, the Vice President of Retail Stores for Europe, the Middle East and India at Apple, told Moneycontrol.

“We love our customers in India, so we’re going to keep investing and innovating to bring even more customers the best of Apple.”

Apple Hebbal at Phoenix Mall of Asia in North Bengaluru, which opens on Tuesday, September 2, is the iPhone maker’s first in South India and third in the country, joining Apple BKC in Mumbai and Apple Saket in Delhi and the Apple Store online. The store’s 70 team members hail from 15 states across India. Like all Apple facilities, Apple Hebbal runs on 100 percent renewable energy and is carbon neutral.

Beckman said Apple envisions its stores as more than just retail outlets, positioning them as community spaces where educators, developers, creatives, and entrepreneurs can collaborate and explore Apple technologies.

The executive said Apple continues to evolve its retail experience to strengthen customer engagement, ensuring both first-time buyers and long-time users receive personalised guidance and support across physical and digital touchpoints.

"We are always innovating at Apple Retail to serve our customers better, and our team members love connecting with them as they discover and buy Apple devices. And whether a customer is new to Apple or an existing one, they should know that our teams in store and through the Apple Store online will give them service and support, and are thrilled to now have four stores in the country," she added.

Highlighting the role of the Apple Store online, she noted that it extends the same premium experience beyond brick-and-mortar, offering expert consultations, product customisation, financing flexibility, and trade-in options. Beckman also pointed to the “Today at Apple” program as a way for customers with varied interests to participate in sessions that help them unlock more value from Apple products.

Industry analysts said Apple’s latest retail push aligns with its broader India strategy of focusing on premium smartphone growth while strengthening its role as a key manufacturing hub. Almost 5% of India’s premium smartphone sales come from Bengaluru, making the city a natural choice for expansion, according to Counterpoint Research.

“Apple continues to commit deeply in India, especially with the retail expansion that helps it control the end-to-end experience with respect to ecosystem products. As Apple’s installed base is increasing in India, its retail presence will be an important pillar as a part of its India strategy,” Tarun Pathak, associate director at Counterpoint, told Moneycontrol.

India’s smartphone market is undergoing a major shift, with devices priced above Rs 45,000 now accounting for nearly a quarter of sales. Analysts added that much of this consumer segment prefers to physically experience devices before purchase, explaining Apple’s focus on hubs like Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Pune, and Hyderabad, which together drive nearly 30% of premium smartphone sales.

Apple opened its first-ever India retail store at Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) in April 2023, followed shortly by Apple Saket in New Delhi the same month. In their debut year, the two stores together clocked about Rs 800 crore in revenue, making them Apple’s top-performing outlets globally, Moneycontrol exclusively reported on October 24. Notably, nearly 60% of sales came from the smaller Saket store.

The strong performance comes despite Apple already having a vast network of premium resellers and thousands of multi-brand outlets across India. Alongside its physical presence, the company also sells devices through its own online store as well as platforms like Flipkart and Amazon.

Apple is now projected to sell iPhones worth $12.1 billion (over Rs 1 lakh crore) in India in 2025, up from $10.8 billion in 2024, according to IDC data reported by Moneycontrol on July 22.

The iPhone’s value share of India’s smartphone market has surged from 19% in 2022 to 24% in 2023 and further to 28% in 2024, driven by record shipments, affordability initiatives, discounts on previous-generation models, no-cost EMI schemes, and a sharper retail focus.