Mercantile Pakistan Marketing Faces Backlash Over iPhone 17 Price Hikes and No Stock

Mercantile Pakistan’s latest iPhone 17 campaign isn’t landing well. People are frustrated as there’s barely any stock, and dealers are charging way more than the official price. The company’s getting called out all over social media for advertising phones that nobody can actually buy.

Under recent Facebook reels promoting the “Mercantile Approved iPhone 17 Pro Max,” users flooded the comments section with complaints. Many said authorized dealers had no stock, while others claimed prices were Rs. 50,000–60,000 higher than the official rate. One customer commented, “Don’t advertise when there’s no availability at dealers.”

Several users accused dealers of charging “own prices,” claiming that some outlets were selling the iPhone 17 Pro Max in Pakistan for over Rs. 6 lakh. Others called out Mercantile for poor control over retail pricing and misleading promotions.

It seems like consumer trust can drop when marketing gets ahead of what’s actually available in stores. We often see shortages when new iPhones come out, sure, but when the ads don’t match what’s on shelves, it opens the door for excessive pricing on the grey market.

Analyst said, Mercantile Pakistan lets dealers set their own prices, which explains why iPhone prices vary across the country.

However, the company has not issued any official statement regarding the issue of iPhone 17 price in Pakistan.