Google has began promoting its in style {hardware} merchandise on to Indian customers via its official on-line retailer, a major transfer that comes forward of the anticipated launch of its first bodily stores within the nation.
For the primary time, Indian customers should purchase Pixel smartphones, smartwatches, and earbuds immediately from the Google Retailer web site. Till now, the corporate relied on authorised retail companions and on-line gross sales via Flipkart, the Walmart-backed e-commerce platform.
The transfer aligns Google extra carefully with rival Apple, which already operates a direct-to-consumer mannequin in India. Apple launched its personal on-line retailer within the nation in 2020 and now has two bodily retail areas – one in Mumbai and one other in New Delhi – with plans for additional growth.
In response to a Reuters report from earlier this 12 months, the American tech large is within the closing phases of selecting websites for its debut brick-and-mortar shops in India, marking the tech large’s first bodily retail foray outdoors the US.
By establishing its personal retail presence, Google seems to be adopting a method that has confirmed extremely profitable for Apple over the previous twenty years. Apple’s international retail community, consisting of greater than 500 shops, has performed a vital function in driving gross sales and constructing model loyalty.
Pixel smartphones in India are priced between roughly ₹30,000 and ₹1.6 lakh ($360 to $1,900), whereas Apple’s iPhones vary from round ₹43,000 to ₹1.75 lakh ($520 to $2,100). Google has additionally just lately began manufacturing some Pixel fashions in India, aligning with the federal government’s push for native manufacturing.
Regardless of these efforts, Google continues to path Apple in India’s premium smartphone section. Knowledge from analysis agency Counterpoint suggests Apple held a commanding 55 per cent share of the high-end market (telephones priced above $520) in 2024, whereas Google captured simply two per cent.
