Apple is all set to open its first-ever company-owned Indian outlet in Mumbai, reported the Economic Times. The outlet is set to be opened at Maker Maxity mall, co-owned by Reliance Industries.

“This COCO (company-owned, company-operated) store will be at par with Apple stores in Hong Kong that are in the range of 20,000 to 25,000 sq ft …The Mumbai flagship store will be on three levels — one floor dedicated as experience centre, another floor for retailing and the top for service centre,” the Economic Times quoted a source as saying in its report. A team from Apple is already in the city and moving forward with pre-opening work.

The outlet is expected to be opened by next September because Apple is importing the fixtures and furniture for its first outlet in the country.

The development comes after the tech giant’s previous attempts in this direction were hampered by government policy that required companies applying for more than 51 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) through single-brand retailing route to locally source 30 percent of the products they sell. But after India amended rules for single-brand licence holders in August, the pathway to full ownership was opened.

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