Apple is a world-renowned company, created in 1976 ; today, the Californian giant is renowned worldwide for its iPhones, but also for its entire range. In this article, we will talk more about the Apple Group's strategy. After presenting the company, we will give the main elements of its strategy and analyze its environment. We will also establish a SWOT matrix.
Apple : Group Presentation
In 2024, Apple has 164,000 employees worldwide, including 2465 on French territory.
In addition, there are 532 stores that are distributed in more than 25 countries ; in France, the number of physical shops is 20.
Also in 2024, the company's turnover fell slightly by 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is indeed $391 billions. In 2023, in France, the turnover is 236 million euros.
In addition, in 2025 there are about 2.2 billion active devices of the brand worldwide, all combined (iPhone, Mac, iPad...). Of these 2.2 billion devices, there are 1 billion iPhones, which still remain one of the most popular devices for consumers in many countries.
For this purpose, IoS has 27.28% of market share, and MacOs just over 15%.
It should also be noted that the company's main activities are the manufacture and sale of products from new technologies, such as smartphones, computers and tablets, not to mention various types of software and multiple services.
The group's strategy in 2025
Apple focuses a large part of its marketing strategy on the customer experience as well as on the quality and reliability of the products offered, without counting on a closed environment that adapts perfectly to all devices in the range.
However, competition remains increasingly lively, which is why Apple must constantly innovate, in order to make its products and services ever more interesting and efficient.
The group's vision in 2025 is essentially based on simplicity, fluidity, design and above all, performance.
Among the main objectives from a strategic point of view, Apple, despite the competition, maintains its leading position in premium smartphones. Despite some "call prices", which are a little cheaper than the others, Apple does not offer, as its competitors, Samsung in particular, "entry-level" smartphones. The target remains a little different for this purpose.
In addition, digital services have developed a lot in recent years and continue today: games, music, streaming, payments or the cloud, customers can now have access to a large number of features and software without having to change their environment. The Apple ecosystem is known to be among the best, the simplest and most fluid for a large number of users.
Little by little, the group must continue to innovate, so as not to bore customers and not to fall behind the competition. Artificial intelligence, connected health, folding devices, all this will undeniably be part of the program in the coming years, whether in innovation or improvement.
The group environment
As we said above, the Apple company has a large number of competitors, the main ones being Samsung and Google for the world of smartphones and tablets, not to mention Xiaomi and Huawei. For everything related to software or computers, competitors are Microsoft, Asus, HP or Samsung.
We will return to this later in the group's SWOT analysis.
To fully understand the environment in which society evolves, it is essential to understand consumer trends and purchasing behaviors. Indeed, trends change steadily and Apple's strategy is essentially based on the experience of its customers to establish a marketing strategy and effective advertising campaigns.
Thus, digital services are taking an increasingly important place in the lives of consumers, especially with regard to video-on-demand and music, not to mention games. The Apple ecosystem is one of the most fluid when it comes to games.
In addition, connected objects are also at the heart of demand, connected watches and bracelets, headphones, headphones...
Apple is also evolving in a context where environmental protection plays an essential role. To this end, it is essential to respect the standards in force in each country.
Apple SWOT Analysis
The forces
As we said above, one of Apple's main strengths is its ecosystem, which is certainly closed, but very efficient and very fluid. The brand is known and renowned as being of the high-end worldwide. The brand is estimated at more than $400 billion, one of the strongest in the world for several years.
In addition, Apple customers generally remain loyal to the brand, more than 92%, much more than for the main competitors.
Innovations are among its main strengths, the investments made in research and development are very important, and represent about 7 to 10% of the total turnover.
The weaknesses
Despite many diversifications in Apple's world, the product that works best remains the iPhone. There is a real dependence on this product, which is the best-selling since its existence, it still represents more than 50% of the group's turnover.
Prices, even entry-level, are expensive, only for tablets that prices remain consistent depending on what the competition offers, but the issue of prices is something that comes up quite frequently in customer comments.
Up above, we were talking about the Apple ecosystem, very closed, and although very consistent, not all consumers necessarily adhere to it. For example, it will be impossible to use such a product or software, this can slow down the purchase.
In Indonesia, sales of iPhone 16 are prohibited, the government has not given IMEI certifications, so this can impact the company's overall turnover.
The opportunities
The opportunities for the group remain numerous, innovations will not fail to follow one another in the coming years, such as a range of smartphones and folding tablets in particular, which are under study.
The group is also present on all networks and has an advertising campaign based on the use of customers with realistic spots that highlight the products in use, so it is easier for consumers to identify themselves. The group is moving towards emerging markets where demand is always stronger. AI and augmented reality are taking a huge place in innovations, and chips are becoming more powerful.
Threats
Competition is the main weakness, Android is taking a growing place in the daily lives of consumers, with software and operating systems often more open. Regulations are always stricter, not to mention the tensions between countries that can impact the group's activity. Apple is an expensive brand therefore exposed to counterfeiting, which has consequences on its reputation.
The new market is gradually declining, more and more consumers are buying reconditioned or second-hand products.
Conclusion
Apple's ecosystem has nothing left to prove today, despite the many challenges that will come in the coming years. If the competitive advantage of the Californian giant is undeniable, the fact remains that it must continue to innovate in areas such as AI or augmented reality to remain at the forefront of technology.
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