About 300 people queued at Apple’s store in Mumbai on Tuesday, as fans took selfies with Chief Executive Tim Cook, who inaugurated the first retail store run by the tech giant in India, underscoring the importance of its market.

“The energy, creativity, and passion in Mumbai is incredible!” Cook, who is making his first visit to India in seven years, said on Twitter. “We are so excited to open … our first store in India.”

People flocked to the store from across India, hoping to be among the first to enter, in an opening event featuring local music and folk dancers.

Some queued outside from the previous night to get their hands on Apple products, even though they are available online in India.

“The fanboy inside me would not listen,” Purav Mehta, 30, told Reuters, as he waited to get Cook’s signature on his boxed mint-condition iPod Touch, which he had bought on eBay, as well as waiting to buy the Apple Watch Ultra.

Many visitors wore T-shirts in the style favored by co-founder Steve Jobs, had their hair cut in the shape of an Apple logo and one fan even brought a version of the first Apple computer launched in 1984.

“The vibe here is just different,” said 23-year old Aan Shah, who traveled from the western industrial city of Ahmedabad for the launch in India’s commercial capital.

Source The Star Phoenix

BDST: 1352 HRS, APRIL 18, 2023
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