Michel Coulomb, Apple India’s new country head, is scrapping off the sales strategy of predecessor Sanjay Kaul and returning back to the ‘organised distribution’ structure for the Mac, iPhones and iPads. The consumers will now face a cease on discount by the tech giant since the number of distributors will be cut down and the company will take a stand to maintain the prices.
Three people aware of the development said that the motive behind the step was to avoid the dilution of brand’s image by the distributors who were given the freedom to sell to any retailer, even at lower prices. In order to reach the targets, the distributors would practice wholesaling the phones at a discounted rate which resulted in fluctuation of prices throughout the country.
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Coulomb was put in charge in December 2017 and he will now retain only two national distributors, Ingram Micro and Redington. However, Brightstar, Rashi Peripherals and HCL Infosystems will be axed.
Earlier, there was a confusion among the planners regarding whether to prioritise the volume sales or keeping the brand’s status intact, to which Coulomb decided to go with the latter and was confident with two national distributors enough to ensure adequate sales and product reach.
Along with this, Apple will trade directly with large retailers and online partners resulting in better control over the prices. The strategy will take place from the new distribution centre of Apple at Bhiwandi.
The officials have confirmed the exit of HCL and Brightstar, whereas Rashi’s exit is on hold. All the terminations will be effective from early next year.
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