Apple unveiled plans to open its first retail store in India as it continues a push to increase sales and establish the country as a major manufacturing hub.

The iPhone-maker revealed its plans for a debut Apple India store on its website, where it uploaded a picture of an outlet in a shopping centre in Mumbai which is owned by Jio Platforms chair Mukesh Ambani.

As part of the announcement, the technology giant boasted a line-up of India-themed promotional features, however no details on the official launch date were provided, only that an opening would happen “soon”.

Apple currently markets its products through local resellers in the country, with the company rumoured to be in the process of building another store in the capital New Delhi.

The retail launch is part of the company’s plot to put a bigger focus on the country, with CEO Tim Cook stating Apple had put “a lot of emphasis” on the market during a recent earnings call.

Bloomberg reported Apple’s moves to increase its presence in India comes after the company reshuffled management of its international business units.

Apple targeted India to take a share of production after it reportedly began moving away from China in December 2022, at a time when manufacturing plants in the country were hit by Covid-19 (coronavirus) lockdowns.

Earlier this year, Indian conglomerate Tata Group was reportedly finalising a deal to take over an iPhone assembly plant from Taiwan-based manufacturer Wistron.

Apple reportedly recently tasked an Indian unit of Hon Hai Precision (Foxconn) to start producing its AirPods in the country, with the manufacturer tipped to construct a $200 million factory to handle the contract.