Latest news with #MitulShah
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Google launches direct Pixel sales in India through official online store with exclusive launch offers
Google has officially launched direct online sales for its complete Pixel lineup through the Google Store in India, marking the first time consumers can purchase these devices directly from Google. Available products include the Pixel 9a, Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, Pixel 9 Pro Fold, Pixel 8a, Pixel 8 Pro smartphones, along with Pixel Watch 3, Pixel Buds Pro 2, and official accessories. The Google Store India offers multiple payment solutions to increase accessibility. No-cost EMI plans extend up to 24 months for smartphones and 12 months for accessories through partnerships with HDFC Bank and 15+ other financial institutions. An exchange program powered by Cashify provides additional savings. Google offering special discounts and deals at launch The launch comes with substantial promotional offers valid until June 30, 2025. Customers can receive instant cashback ranging from Rs 3,000 to Rs 10,000 depending on the device, alongside Google Store discounts of up to Rs 37,000 on select models. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Veja as quarenta mulheres mais lindas do Brasil Gloriousa Undo Google is also offering launch period bonuses on exchange program adding Rs 6,000 to Rs 15,000 extra value for traded devices. The flagship Pixel 9 Pro receives a Rs 10,000 Google Store discount plus Rs 10,000 instant cashback, bringing its effective price down to Rs 89,999 from the original Rs 1,09,999 MRP. Similarly, the Pixel 9 Pro XL is available for Rs 1,04,999 after discounts, while the premium Pixel 9 Pro Fold sees a massive Rs 47,000 total reduction to Rs 1,52,999. The Pixel 8a sees the steepest discount, bringing its effective price down to Rs 34,999 from the original Rs 52,999 MRP. Google has simultaneously strengthened its service infrastructure, expanding same-day repair capabilities to 20 centers nationwide. The company reports that seven out of ten phones are now repaired within 24 hours, with free doorstep pickup available for convenience. "India remains a key market for Pixel," said Mitul Shah , Managing Director of Devices and Services at Google India. The direct sales channel supports Google's broader retail expansion, which now includes over 2,000 store locations across India through partnerships with major retailers like Croma and Reliance. AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Google opens its online store to sell Pixel devices throughout India
To bolster its presence in India, Google on Thursday (May 29, 2025) announced the availability of its Pixel devices through its official Google Store online. Buyers can purchase Pixel phones, watches, buds, and accessories. With this online store, Google aims to replicate Apple's online store model in the world's most populous country. The Google Online store will also provide financing options such as no-cost EMIs, instant cashback, exchange bonuses, and store credits. Apart from selling on its online store, Google sells Pixel devices through 25+ large format retail and mobile wireless partners including Flipkart, Croma, Reliance, Vijay Sales, Bajaj Electronics and Poorvika, Sangeetha. 'We've deepened our commitment to growing hands-on buying experiences, with fixtures in over 200 stores and overall distribution now spanning more than 2000 stores across the country,' said Mitul Shah, MD, Devices and Services, Google India. (For top technology news of the day, subscribe to our tech newsletter Today's Cache) The new Google Store will also help Pixel users in servicing. They can now self-serve by initiating repair requests and scheduling pick-up directly from the website. People can also opt for free doorstep pick-up and drop through mail-in service. Google said that it has also expanded their same day repair capabilities with 20 service centres in India, including our three existing Google Exclusive Service Centres. 'Today, 7 out of 10 phones are repaired on the same day,' writes Mr. Shah.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
"This is the first-of-its-kind,' Google's Mitul Shah on tailoring a online Google Store experience around India's unique needs
There's a particular moment in every market expansion when companies face a fundamental choice: replicate what works elsewhere, or build something entirely new. For 's Pixel business in India, that moment arrived with the launch of their direct-to-consumer online store, a decision that reveals as much about the company's understanding of Indian consumers as it does about the evolution of retail technology itself. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Mitul Shah , Managing Director of Devices and Services at , sat down with the Times of India to discuss this very approach of strategic patience. Speaking with him, it becomes clear that the launch of the Google Store in India isn't merely about adding another sales channel, it's about fundamentally reimagining what a technology brand's relationship with consumers should look like in one of the world's most complex markets. "In India, we didn't copy-paste a template, we built a first-of-its-kind store," Shah explains, his conviction evident in every word. This statement carries weight beyond typical corporate positioning. It reflects a deeper philosophical shift in how global technology companies approach market localisation, moving from adaptation to ground-up innovation. The implications are profound. While most international brands enter India with modified versions of their global strategies, Google chose a different path entirely. They waited, observed, and then built something that had never existed in their global portfolio. The result is a store experience that includes UPI payments, extensive EMI options across dozens of Indian banks, comprehensive trade-in programs, and same-day repair services, capabilities that don't exist in Google's operations anywhere else in the world. "This is the first-of-its-kind Google Online Store we've launched anywhere else in the world," Shah emphasises. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "India is, in many ways, a unique thing. And with all of those capabilities, I believe now is the perfect time to get started." The reversal is striking: instead of India adapting to Google's global template, Google has created something specifically for India that may well influence their approach elsewhere. This is direct, dedicated and delightful The timing question reveals Shah's deeper understanding of consumer psychology and market maturation. When pressed about why Google waited nearly three years after re-entering the Indian smartphone market with Pixel 7 to launch their direct store, his response illuminates the sophisticated calculus behind market entry timing. "If you look at it from a consumer behaviour point of view, 10 or 15 years back, all of us as customers would probably go and do discovery of the product in a retail store," Shah begins, painting a picture of India's retail evolution. "Today, if any premium product you are purchasing, chances are that you would go online at some point of time, right? 100% of my purchases, I would have gone online." This observation touches on something more fundamental than shopping preferences, it's about the democratisation of information and the collapse of traditional retail hierarchies. Indian consumers, particularly in the premium segment, have leapfrogged traditional discovery patterns, moving directly to brand-authentic sources for product information and purchasing decisions. The shift represents what Shah identifies as a trust revolution. "In India, direct-to-consumer channels, why they are thriving regardless of which industry that is in, is also because Indian consumers have started trusting brands and the authenticity of the information which is coming from them a lot more," he notes. This trust dividend has translated into tangible business metrics: higher average selling prices, increased purchase confidence, and greater willingness to engage directly with brands. But Shah's strategic patience extended beyond consumer behaviour analysis. The post-COVID period provided crucial market intelligence. "Post-COVID, the industry hadn't stabilised fully in terms of consumer behaviour. During COVID, we saw massive expansion of online purchase behaviour, and a lot of that behaviour eventually got sort of normalised post-COVID," he explains. This waiting period allowed Google to distinguish between temporary pandemic-driven changes and permanent behavioural shifts. The culmination of this analysis led to what Shah characterises with memorable alliteration: "From my perspective, this is a perfect time because that's what the consumer is looking for, to give an option of Google Online Store. One, you can educate customers, provide all the comprehensive product information, including AI features, which you know would be amazing. Engage with them directly, you know, create a great brand connect. And three, provide a great customer experience all the way from product display to transaction to post-purchase support. So in my mind, you know, I look at Google Online Store and say, you know, this is direct, dedicated and delightful." It's not just another channel, it's a capability Shah's distinction between channels and capabilities represents perhaps the most sophisticated aspect of Google's India strategy. This isn't semantic positioning, it's a fundamental reconceptualisation of what retail infrastructure should accomplish in complex markets like India. "When we think about online Google Store , in my mind, it's not just another channel. That, you know, if you're selling your product on , then why not sell your product on Google Online Store? Now, when you launch a brand's online store, it is not a channel, it's a capability," Shah explains. This capability framework encompasses everything from payment integration to post-purchase support, treating each element as interconnected components of a larger consumer experience ecosystem. The payment integration alone illustrates this complexity. "For example, on Google Online Store for India specifically, we are bringing payment methods, which includes UPI. Now, that is such a unique thing, it doesn't exist anywhere else in the world, right? Or, for example, Indian users are very, very used to buying their smartphone, particularly premium smartphones, using EMI options, right? And in India, you don't have EMI options with one or two carriers, it would be with dozens of banks, right?" This granular attention to financial infrastructure reveals Google's understanding that technology adoption in India isn't just about product appeal, it's about financial accessibility and payment methodology alignment. The integration of dozens of EMI providers isn't a technical convenience; it's cultural recognition of how Indian consumers manage major purchases across diverse financial institutions and economic circumstances. Shah also addresses the uniquely Indian expectation around device exchange. "The other unique feature about Indian consumers is that, you know, you are not going to buy a new smartphone without actually getting value for your existing one. So buyback or trade-in capability, and to be able to do that online, becomes another capability." This observation goes beyond recycling or sustainability messaging, it acknowledges the economic reality that premium technology purchases in India often require extracting maximum value from existing devices. The strategic brilliance emerges in how Google positions this direct capability relative to existing retail partnerships. Rather than creating competitive tension, Shah frames the brand store as generating positive network effects. "When a brand store comes into the country, it creates this nice halo effect, and that actually helps everyone. So in this case, you know, all our partners are thrilled that this brand store is coming in, because that creates a great halo effect. Everybody gets benefited out of it." This ecosystem thinking, where direct presence elevates rather than threatens retail partners, represents sophisticated market development strategy. "You get to create a benchmark of what a customer experience should look like, right? And that creates sort of a nice way for people to say, 'Okay, this is how the great customer experience looks like.' So I think this is, in a way, very complementary to the existing both online and offline retail strategy." When asked directly about cannibalisation concerns, Shah's response is definitive: 'Absolutely not. The size of the pie is increasing." We are standing behind your experience The service infrastructure conversation reveals perhaps the most telling aspect of Google's India commitment. Shah's acknowledgment of inevitable friction points in complex purchase journeys demonstrates both humility and strategic sophistication. "If you look at that entire journey, I would argue that, you know, there is always going to be some or the other point where the journey breaks for the customer. You experience that. I experience that. If it's not one smartphone, you go and buy tomorrow a fridge or a TV, somewhere, experience breaks, right?" This admission of universal consumer pain points positions Google's service investment as addressing fundamental market failures rather than simply supporting their own products. The company's response involves unprecedented service infrastructure investment. "India is the only country where Google is investing into its own service center," Shah reveals. This represents a remarkable commitment considering Google's global approach to service partnerships. The decision to own service infrastructure in India specifically acknowledges the market's unique requirements and the company's long-term commitment. The service network spans multiple touch points: "We are enhancing our entire service infrastructure also with the launch of this online store, so customers would have an option to directly email, chat, call, you know, register a complaint. The device can be picked up from a doorstep, or they can mail in the device, or they can generate a ticket and go into Google's own service center." A secondary Google representative elaborates on the scope: "We have already brought in three of our own walk-in centers, which is Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and we are obviously coming up with more. So again, very unique to India, where Google actually is opening its own service center. Again, it's our enduring and long-term commitment to Indian consumers that across the entire value chain, we want to bring our own presence and make sure customer experience is enhanced." The geographic reach is impressive: coverage extending to 90-95% of India's pincodes for mail-in service, with 20 centers offering same-day repairs. This infrastructure investment goes far beyond typical retail support, it's market-making investment in consumer confidence. Shah frames this comprehensive approach as fundamental brand promise: "Having a Google Online Store, having a brand's presence, in a way, is a promise to customer, that we are bringing the best to you, and we are standing behind your experience. And if something were to go wrong, we are here to take care of it.' Proudly owning the entire journey for customers The conversation's culmination reveals Google's broader strategic ambition. When asked about parallels to Apple's integrated retail approach in India, Shah's response transcends competitive positioning: "I and my team's mission is to get up every day and say: Can we put more AI-powered devices in the hands of the Indian consumer? And while doing so, can we make it the point that that experience is as amazing as the Indian consumer deserves right now?" This mission-driven framework justifies comprehensive infrastructure investment: "If that means we need to bring our own direct-to-customer channel, then we are doing that. If that means we need to bring manufacturing, our own service center, or if that means we need to bring, you know, great service support network, we will do whatever it takes for us to make sure that we serve to that mission." The Google Store India launch thus emerges not as retail expansion but as strategic declaration. "This is also, in a way, our announcement to the country that we are committed, that we are continuing to bring great investment," Shah concludes. "So if you ask me, we are firing at all cylinders at this point of time."
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Google begins direct sales of Pixel devices in India via official online Google Store
Google on Thursday launched direct sales of its Pixel devices through the official online Google Store in India, allowing consumers to purchase smartphones, watches, buds, and accessories directly for the first time. This will complement Google's existing online and offline retail footprint, a company statement said. Managing director of devices and services at Google India, Mitul Shah, said launching direct online purchasing from the India Google Store is primarily driven by the "dynamic and evolving" Indian smartphone market. "Direct online purchasing from the Google Store in India complements our already robust retail presence - both online and in physical stores, along with our partners - all aimed at providing choice and meeting our users where they are. We will continue to invest across all fronts, focusing on expanding retail availability, strengthening customer support, and ensuring attractive affordability options," he said. Shah, however, did not provide a timeline on when Google will open its own physical stores in India. Live Events Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories "India remains a strategic focus and key market for Pixel. With a strategy squarely focused on empowering Indians with AI-powered devices, we are firing on all cylinders," he added. PTI
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Business
- Indian Express
Google Store offering direct-to-consumer sale of Pixel devices, now live in India
Google on Thursday, May 29, introduced its official Google Store in India offering direct online purchases of its Pixel devices. Pixel fans across the country will now be able to purchase these products directly from the source. The latest addition complements Google's existing online and offline retail footprint. According to the company, this direct-to-consumer expansion is a cornerstone of Pixel's strategy in India. Mitul Shah, managing director of devices and services, Google India said that India continues to be a key market for Pixel. The company sees Indian customers at the forefront of embracing technology that elevates their daily lives and fulfills their evolving aspirations. 'The launch of direct online purchases on the Google Store is a pivotal step in our mission to empower more Indians with our AI-powered Pixel devices. By providing direct access, flexible financing, and a seamless experience, we are not just selling hardware; we are delivering intelligent, helpful tools designed to unlock creativity, boost productivity, and keep users connected. This step furthers our commitment to India and our excitement for its digital future,' Shah said. The India Google Store will allow consumers to choose from various payment modes including UPI, and offer a plethora of customer-centric affordability options such as no cost EMI, instant cashback, exchange bonus, store credits, etc. With no cost EMI, consumers can pay for purchases over time through HDFC and over 15 other select banks. One can receive instant cashback when they pay via EMI using a credit card, starting with select HDFC bank credit cards. Also, upon exchanging an old smartphone consumers can avail a special exchange bonus. Existing Pixel users get additional offers or discounts upon upgrading their device through the exchange program. Besides, accumulating store credits will allow consumers to use the same for future purchases on Google Store. Bringing AI to the masses Shah, in an exclusive interview with shared that Google has brought massive investments to India. He said that it is a long-term commitment, starting from manufacturing to Google-owned service centres in India. Three of these service centres are in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, with more centres planned. As of now, Pixel devices are available in over 2,000 retail outlets across India, and almost 250 of those stores offer a full Pixel experience. With the new online store, customers can directly purchase their preferred Pixel device. Shah said that in a short frame of time, the company is seeing much progress in terms of channel and capability building, as well as providing a great purchase experience to customers. When asked how the response to Pixel devices among Indian consumers was, Shah responded by calling it 'fabulous'. 'We launched Pixel 9 Pro in India just a month back, and the response has been absolutely phenomenal. Some of the latest features – for example, live video screen sharing – the kind of feedback we are getting from our partners and our consumers is absolutely phenomenal.' Pixel phones boast Google's custom Tensor chip, Android, and AI features, and are known for delivering smart, helpful tools tailored to Indian users through its powerful cameras, voice assistance, and more. Shah said that Google's primary objective is to bring AI-powered devices to all and to ensure that their creativity, productivity, and connection with others is enhanced. 'We want to put AI-powered devices in the hands of every Indian consumer. Indian consumers are discerning, but more importantly, they're also very creative. So what they would do with these AI-powered devices, be that productivity or creativity, or even a simple thing like human connection. My personal belief is that AI will actually make us better,' Shah said. With the launch of direct sales through the online store, Google marks a major step in Pixel's growth strategy in India. The company aims to make Pixel devices and the Google ecosystem widely accessible for people, and this is backed by its thriving retail network and strong customer service. At present, Pixel devices are available through 25+ retail partners such as Reliance Digital, Croma, and Vijay Sales, with over 2,000 stores offering devices across India. When it comes to support, Google has been strengthening its offerings with 20 service centres that provide same-day repairs. The company claims that seven out of 10 devices are fixed on the same day. Consumers can also schedule doorstep pick-up and drop-offs or request repairs directly through the Google Store. Bijin Jose, an Assistant Editor at Indian Express Online in New Delhi, is a technology journalist with a portfolio spanning various prestigious publications. Starting as a citizen journalist with The Times of India in 2013, he transitioned through roles at India Today Digital and The Economic Times, before finding his niche at The Indian Express. With a BA in English from Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara, and an MA in English Literature, Bijin's expertise extends from crime reporting to cultural features. With a keen interest in closely covering developments in artificial intelligence, Bijin provides nuanced perspectives on its implications for society and beyond. ... Read More
