It is awesome how Apple always finds a way to walk their way, separate from the herd. Recently, yet again, they’ve managed to be a crowd pleaser by dodging the introduction of the single producer levy in India. iPhones will continue to sell at discounted prices on e-commerce sites even after the latest trend in the smartphone industry of uniform pricing across online platforms as well as physical stores.
In a recent report published in the Economic Times, Apple said that the iconic phone-maker and its distributors have confirmed that the online discounting will remain a key strategy for Apple in India. In the past months, the approach has led to an instant surge in sales and cleared inventory that was stuck for a while. So, Apple will remain a part of all online discounting promotions.
Until recently, Apple distributors were indicating that the iPhone prices would be same across all sales channels after the GST, bringing an end to discounting that was sourced from low-tax markets. However, now it has been clarified that the online discounting will continue.
Industry sources have also said that according to Apple India officials, the company will set the MRP and after that the distributors, online sellers or even offline stores are free to sell the products at any price.
One of them said, “The discounts are now funded by the distributor and sellers, with some occasional support from Apple. Such support from Apple is for both online marketplaces and also for the exclusive Apple Premium Resellers.”
During the Independence Day sales in August at Amazon and Flipkart, the offline retailers were struck dumb when they saw the sites offer substantial discounts of INR 5000 to 6000. Apple Premium resellers, lately, have also started price promotions during weekends to drive sales.
Currently, Amazon is offering discounts, cash backs as well as exchange offers in their “Apple Fest” campaign.
“Apple products are hot favourites with e-commerce marketplaces since they have a brand pull, and yield higher gross merchandise value due to higher prices. Even the Apple Premium Resellers get around 10% retail margins as compared to the usual 4-5%, and hence they have the bandwidth to discount the products,” said one of the executives.
And adding the cherry on top of the cake, industry executives have said that the prices are likely to get further deducted from September onwards as Apple plans to clean out the old inventory before the launch of their new flagship models which are expected to hit the market before Diwali.
Adding to the matter, one executive mentioned, “Discounting will be restricted largely to the old models, and Apple will ensure strict control of discounting on the new iPhone model. As a precursor to the launch of new models, Apple has just organized its distribution structure.”
