India’s plans to ease local sourcing rules in single brand retail to help companies such as Apple open their own retail stores in India, reports The Economic Times, quoting various “analysts and sector watchers. The move is purportedly aimed at attracting higher foreign investment at a time when global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows have slowed, but those coming into India have been robust.
Getting a foothold in India has been a challenge for Apple. The company has opened its retail stores in a number of countries around the world, but not in India. The country has restrictive real estate investment laws for foreign companies.
Apple wants to open premium retail stores at prime locations either in a mall or high street in New Delhi and Mumbai. The Indian stores will be nearly double than that of its average global store size of 8,500 square feet and will be the biggest single brand electronics store in the country, nearly 7-10 times that of rival Samsung, according to The Economic Times.
