Apple has registered a new legal entity on the territory of the Russian Federation – Apple Rus LLC. The main activity of the subsidiary will be wholesale and retail sale of computers.
According to SPARK-Interfax, Apple Rus is 99.5% owned by Apple Holding B.V., and the rest is owned by the Irish Apple Distributio, the authorized capital of the company is 3.3 million rubles. Vitaly Morozko, who is also a legal adviser to the corporation, has been appointed CEO of Apple Rus LLC.
The registration of a legal entity confirms rumors that the Apple company is preparing to open its own retail stores in Russia. Perhaps the reasons for this were the growing market of “gray” devices and a number of disagreements with Russian operators regarding the supply of “apple” devices (recall the recent criticism of MTS regarding Apple’s pricing policy).
“Registering a legal entity is a serious step for Apple to work directly with the Russian channel,” said Evgeny Butman, co—owner of Ideas4retail holding.
According to rumors, direct contracts with retailers will reduce the prices of gadgets, and after the opening of direct partner sales points, the company will launch its online store. It is still unknown how much the distribution schemes of Apple devices in Russia will change after that. But Apple Rus will start its activity only in 2013.