Apple gives Tata India iPhone repair business as partnership expands, sources say
Apple had brought in Tata Group to handle repairs for iPhones and MacBook devices in its fast-growing Indian market, signalling the Indian conglomerate's deepening role in the US tech giant's supply chain, two people familiar with the matter said.
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As Apple looks beyond China for manufacturing, Tata has fast emerged as its key supplier and already assembles iPhones for local and foreign markets at three facilities in south India, with one of them also making some iPhone components.
In its latest partnership expansion, Tata was taking over the mandate from an Indian unit of Taiwan's Wistron, ICT Service Management Solutions, and would carry out such after-sales repairs from its Karnataka iPhone assembly campus, both sources said.
The market for repairs is going to boom in India, the world's second-biggest smartphone market, as iPhone sales skyrocket. Counterpoint Research estimates around 11 million iPhones were sold in India last year, giving Apple a 7 per cent market share, compared to just 1 per cent in 2020.
Apple CEO Tim Cook attends the inauguration of India's first Apple retail store in Mumbai in April 2023. Photo: Reuters
The latest contract award signals Apple's growing confidence in Tata as it hopes to win more business from the world's most valuable smartphone company.
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