With the new Pixel 9 series launch on August 13, Google has finally realised that to gain a loyal user base in India it needs to have a retail presence. And to execute this momentous feat, the U.S. based search giant has partnered with Tata’s Croma and Reliance Digital to offer the Pixel ecosystem of devices to a larger audience in the world’s most populous country.
With the new retail expansion, Google said that the Pixel products will now be available in over 150 Croma and Reliance Digital outlets across 15 cities in India.
Counterpoint Research points that offline retail captures around 60% sales in non-festive quarter and around 40% in festive quarter due to ease of financing, trade in and better bundling offers in premium devices.
“It sakes sense for Google to scale in offline as they have a good mind share in features like camera and AI and both of them can be explained better in offline channels,” said Tarun Pathak, Research Director at Counterpoint. But, it also need financing to scale things faster, he added.
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Before this retail expansion, Google used to sell Pixel devices only through Flipkart in India.
“Discoverability of Pixel devices has always been an issue. Though people, potential buyers do get intrigued by Pixel around launches they don’t then get enough touch points to experience it. These centres will help in that,” said Faisal Kawoosa, Founder of an industry research firm Techarc.
The Alphabet-owned company, for the first time ever, also announced the opening of three company-owned after-sales services centres in collaboration with Flipkart’s service arm, F1 Info Solutions and Services Private Limited. Earlier, it used to happen on call.
Google new service centers in India | Photo Credit: Haider Ali Khan
During the product briefing, a Google spokesperson said that not only Pixel users but Nest owners can also walk-in and get their products repaired.
These new initiatives by Google are viewed as an important step towards expanding its market share in India, which is just 0.1%, as per CyberMedia Research (CMR).
“Google’s aims at ramping-up its offline retail presence in India marks a first in a series of strategic moves to build the brand presence in a very hyper-competitive market,” said Prabhu Ram, VP, Industry Research Group (IRG), CMR.
Pixel market share in India was 0.25% in 2023 and in premium segment it was 1%. In Q2, the market share was 0.4%, said Counterpoint.
Counterpoint believes that Google can be a dark horse in the Indian premium smartphone segment. “With new updates and focus on India market, we expect sales of Pixel devices in India to become 3X within a year.” Most of the growth is expected in 2H of 2024.
To have an Apple-like ecosystem in India, Google, last year, had announced to make Pixel phones here with local partners like Dixon. On August 12, it announced the rollout of first batch of Pixel 8 phones in India. While speaking to The Hindu, Google said to start producing Pixel 8a next in India.
However, Google is not looking to export as of now from India, its spokesperson told.
“For any brand to survive in India, omni-channel presence is essential as the proportion is 50:50 online-offline. This expansion to retail channel will give an edge in terms on wider presence especially in large format retails where the brand recall will be higher and relatable. With rising ASPs of devices the share of modern trade has gone up in past two years,” said Upasana Joshi, Senior Research Manager, IDC India.
Google on Tuesday launched Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL and its first-ever foldable to come to India, Pixel 9 Pro Fold. It also introduced Pixel Buds Pro 2 and Pixel Watch 3 here.
“To gain traction, Google must address the current pricing challenges faced by its Pixel devices, making both new and older models more accessible to a wider consumer base which is crucial for the company to establish a strong foothold in India,” added Prabhu.
The channel expansion and local manufacturing mean better pricing of new products, Counterpoint argues. However, the new Pixel 9 series is not made in India currently.
Google has good chance to gain share in enterprise segment as well, added Tarun.
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