Excited to build on Apple's long-standing history in India, says Tim Cook

Ahead of the Apple BKC store launch in Mumbai on Tuesday, CEO Tim Cook said the tech giant is excited to build on its over 25-year history in India.

"India has such a beautiful culture and an incredible energy, and we're excited to build on our long-standing history — supporting our customers, investing in local communities, and working together to build a better future with innovations that serve humanity," the Apple chief executive officer says in a statement.

Apple's first two retail stores in India will open this week in Mumbai and Delhi, marking a major expansion for the tech giant in the country.

This store launch comes at a time when App Store payouts to developers in India have more than tripled since 2018.

Apple's iOS App Design and Development Accelerator in Bengaluru has hosted sessions for more than 15,000 developers since 2017, the tech giant says, adding that India's vibrant community of app developers now supports more than 1 million jobs.

Apple began manufacturing iPhones in India in 2017, and since then, the company has worked with suppliers to assemble iPhone models and produce a growing number of components.

"As part of Apple's commitment to be 100% carbon neutral for its supply chain and products by 2030, all active Indian manufacturing supply chain partners are committed to using 100% clean energy for their Apple operations," the iPhone maker says.

Apple BKC, the company's first retail store in India, is one of its most sustainable stores yet. "Apple BKC is designed to be one of the most energy-efficient Apple Store locations in the world, with a dedicated solar array and zero reliance on fossil fuels for store operations. The store is operationally carbon neutral, running on 100 percent renewable energy," the tech behemoth says. The store employs more than 100 team members who collectively speak over 20 languages.

The opening of the two new Apple stores comes at a time when the iPhone maker's India business set a quarterly revenue record and grew very strong double digits year-over-year. "India is a hugely exciting market for us and is a major focus. We brought the online store there in 2020. We will soon bring Apple retail there," Cook said in an earnings call in February.

The Cupertino, California-headquartered tech giant is putting a lot of emphasis on the Indian market. "There's been a lot done from financing options and trade-ins to make products more affordable and give people more options to buy. And so there's a lot going on there," the Apple CEO said.

"We actually did fairly well through COVID in India. And I'm even more bullish now on the other side of it, or hopefully, on the other side of it. And that's the reason why we're investing there. We're bringing retail there and bringing the online store there and putting a significant amount of energy there," he added.