Flipkart cashes in on strong iPhone 7 launch, Binny delivers first device

Bansal rode pillion on motorbike with his delivery colleague to reach Gaurav, the first person to get the iPhone 7

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At 7, iPhone 7, the latest smartphone of Apple went on sale in India.

In Bengaluru, Binny Bansal, co-founder and chief executive officer of Flipkart delivered the first iPhone 7 within 30 minutes of the official launch of the smartphone to a customer in its neighbourhood.

Bansal, wearing the official blue jersey of Ekart, Flipkart’s delivery arm rode pillion on motorbike with his delivery colleague  to reach the home of Gaurav at HSR layout, who became the first person to get the iPhone 7.  For both Bansals -- Sachin in his hometown Chandigarh and Binny in Bengaluru -- it has been a day of delivering products and meeting those customers who bought them on the platform.

Flipkart had claimed over 100,000 consumers shopped for products exceeding Rs 50,000 in the five day Big Billion Days that concluded on Friday. Some of these high value shoppers would have ordered the iPhone 7, which cost upwards of Rs 60,000 and Binny’s move is to acknowledge them.

But it is not just that shoppers bought iPhone 7 online. Hoards of people thronged around the Apple Store at Bengaluru’s upmarket UB City mall on this Friday evening in anticipation of the launch of the latest iPhone 7. They were all waiting impatiently to be the first to get their hands on the new device, a trend Apple has very successfully executed across the globe.

These millennials, who had lined up at the store on a Friday night, were clearly sacrificing being out with friends at one of the many pubs around the UB City area.
The launch is in stark contrast to last year when doors to buy the iPhone 6s opened at midnight. In the morning, store owners at popular locations reported single and double digit iPhone sales, giving a clear sign of how things were going to be. While Apple reported strong growth of iPhone sales in India over the past year, analysts say half of the company’s sales came from older (cheaper) models.

Apple, which is pitching India as the next big market, brought the phones to the country in three weeks, unlike in the past when it would take months.

Google has also has brought in Flipkart as an exclusive online partner for its Pixel smartphone in India. Pitted against the iPhone, in terms of price and features, is looking to subdue sales of Apple’s flagship device in the country by opening up pre-orders on October 13.