Nokia veteran, Ashish Chowdhary, who served as the Chief Customer Operations Officer at Nokia Networks, has now been appointed the Country Manager for India at Apple. Tim Cook’s plans for the Indian market seem to be taking more tangible shape and revving up to leverage on roughly 450 million users in a country that today has one of the fastest growth rates, after China and the US. 

Chowdhary’s appointment points to the fact that Apple is looking at a long-term growth plan in India’s aspirational economy. Apple products in India are still a consciously tough choice in the country’s price-sensitive market. Affordability often looms larger than quality and convenience and to crack into a market predisposed to spending less, making long-term inroads might be an ordeal. Having a seasoned experience in both global and local markets, roping in Chowdhary would help Apple target a bigger slice of the market. Having served various leadership roles such as Head of Asia Middle East and Africa and Head of Global Services Business Unit, the company must be pinning their hopes on Chowdhary to drive their growth map in India.

Nokia announced Chowdhary’s departure stating that Chowdhary will "leave Nokia at the end of 2018 after 15 successful years” but also that he will “continue to lead Customer Operations and remain a member of the Nokia Group Leadership Team until the end of 2018. He will then leave Nokia to take a leadership position in another company”.

Tim Cook went on record stating his views on expanding the Apple empire in India, "I am a big believer in India. I am very bullish on the country and the people and our ability to do well there. There's a huge number of people that will move into the middle class. The government has really focused on reform in a major way and made some very bold moves. I applaud them for doing that and I can't wait for the future there”.

The growth opportunity that India offers is undeniable but how do you change the mass perception of a brand while still holding onto all that the brand stands for?

Image source :The Indian Express