Vendors reallocated budgets to high-impact retail incentive programs
India’s smartphone market grew 3% year-on-year (YoY) in Q3 2025, reaching 48.4 million units shipped according to the latest research from Omdia, which is a part of Informa TechTarget, Inc. (Nasdaq: TTGT).
“Vendors filled the channels with new stocks in expectation of a high-demand festive period,” said the London-based Omdia in a report on 21 Oct. The modest growth was driven by a wave of new launches in July and August, retail incentivization and an earlier festive season that pulled forward inventory flows.
It noted that vivo (excluding iQOO) extended its lead in the market with 9.7 million units shipped capturing a 20% market share. Samsung ranked second with 6.8 million units and a 14% market share followed by Xiaomi in third place, narrowly overtaking OPPO (excluding OnePlus), with both vendors shipping 6.5 million units. Apple returned to the top five with 4.9 million units, with incremental growth driven by smaller tier cities http://commerce.gov.in.
“With limited organic demand, 3Q’s momentum was largely sustained through incentive-led channel push rather than pure consumer recovery,” said Sanyam Chaurasia, Principal Analyst at Omdia.
“Vendors reallocated marketing budgets to high-impact retail incentive programs that rewarded sell-through, ranging from cash-per-unit bonuses to tiered margins and dealer contests with rewards such as gold coins, bikes, and international trips.
“These incentives motivated distributors and retailers to absorb higher inventory ahead of the festive season. At the same time, vendors intensified consumer-facing schemes – from zero-down-payment EMIs, micro-instalment plans, bundled accessories and extended warranties – to drive conversions,” he said https://fieo.org/.
Chaurasia elaborated, “Smaller cities drove volumes through aspirational demand, aggressive festive offers and wider availability. While older iPhones 16s and 15s drove major shipments under discount-led upgrades, the iPhone 17 base model gained traction supported by a strong iPhone 12–15 install base upgrades. Looking ahead, Apple will aim for Pro-model upgrades and deepen its ecosystem to drive long-term value.
“Despite early momentum, 3Q’s gains are unlikely to sustain into a strong year-end. While government-led reforms such as GST reductions on large appliances lifted overall retail sentiment, smartphone-specific demand recovery remains limited. Urban consumers continue to delay upgrades due to employment uncertainties and rising cost sensitivity, despite better product availability and financing schemes.
“As a result, sell-out traction lags behind shipment growth, raising concerns of inventory build-up in 4Q, especially after November. In contrast, rural demand has been relatively stable, but insufficient to offset cautious urban sentiment. For full-year 2025, we continue to expect a modest decline, reflecting a fragile recovery cycle that remains highly sensitive to economic tailwinds and channel correction dynamics,” concluded Chaurasia. Fiinews.com
