Conventional wisdom has it that the Apple iPhone is too expensive for South Africa. As a result, while it is the bestselling phone in the US , it lags far behind Samsung and Huawei in South Africa.
That is beginning to change, as the local distributor explores business models and sales strategies that make the brand accessible to more than just the top end of the market. The Core Group, sole distributor for Apple in sub-Saharan Africa, has leveraged both its iStore retail chain and relationships with major banks to create a South African approach to iPhone sales.
"The entry level is as important to me as the latest flagship," says Chris Dodd, iStore CEO. "Last year, we realised we had to find ways to make the iPhone more affordable, either by finding entry-level products or finding new mechanisms."
The new mechanism came in the shape of an iStore credit card, issued by Standard Bank, which allows customers to finance the purchase of an iPhone over 12 or 24 months at preferential interest rates.
Meanwhile, the entry-level products - not a phrase one usually finds in Apple marketing - came in the form of CPO iPhones. That's not a new phone model, but a new business model. It stands for "certified pre-owned", and represents old used iPhones that have gone back to the factory and been refurbished. They look and feel new, and come with a 12-month guarantee...