Nokia shuts down stores as market shares continue to dip

Nokia recently announced closing of their online shops in France, Spain and the Netherlands. The Finnish manufacturer cited the lackluster sales performance due to the subsidies offered from carriers in both regions as the major reason for the closure. The company told Engadget, "prices are too subsidized by the carriers and sales were low, so they will keep providing support."

This move has disabled mobile users in these countries to purchase phones from the company's online stores.  While there is no official news on whether stores in other countries will be closed, the move seems highly likely. Nokia had opened 12 stores in major cities around the world in a bid to replicate the success of Apple's retail stores.

Nokia also officially announced that it will close its flagship stores in US as  a part of a retail strategy revamp. The announcement comes as the company's U.S. market share continue to see a dip. According to reports the shares have fallen well below 10 percent. The company is also reported to be closing its stores in London and Sao Paolo as well.

Nokia is seeing some tough times. The company faces stiff competition from Apple who has eaten into its shares. Though a relative new entrant in the cell phones market Apple with its innovative and user friendly interface captured the hearts and minds of thousands across the world with its  iconic iPhone in 2007. The battle between Apple and Nokia has being fierce and has gotten worse as Apple continues to gain market share, while Nokia's share keep sliding.

Despite selling less phones than Nokia, the popular gadget maker gained more profit from its phones. Taking a cue from the popularity of Apple's app store and online stores, Nokia tried to recreate the same magic for itself but failed. In order to regain grounds in the mobiles market, Nokia is refocusing itself on the smartphone market. The company seems confident that Windows Phones will be the triumph card that will make the company profitable once again.

Nokia recently announced the shipping of its Nokia E6 and Nokia X7 devices worldwide and is expected to hit the Indian shores shortly.