Speaking of Regent Street, the application process for employees has been very competitive. Apple reportedly received over 4,000 applications to work at this first store east of the Atlantic Ocean, but there are only 120 openings. That means fewer than one out of every 33 applicants was hired.
Thanks to Monte for the great photo collection of the Rosedale (Minn.) grand opening.
A Iowa City Press-Democrat newspaper article discusses the upcoming Jordan Creek mall, where Apple will have a retail store.
Thanks to Michael for photos and information about the Rosedale (Minn.) grand opening, the third store in the region. He says the first person arrived in-line at 6:30 a.m., and about 200 were waiting when the doors opened at 10 a.m. (but other say it was more like 800). He said there were about 100 iPods and iPod Mini’s behind the counter for sale, along with a supply of Airport Express devices. The commemorative grand opening T-shirt is black with white lettering.
The flagship stores will debut iPod Geniuses, staffers outfitted in special T-shirts and armed with everything you could possibly want to know about iPods.
The front window displays of retail stores have changed to match the "Cram and Jam" sales promotion of recently-worn T-shirts. The display features suspended plastic panels, into which several items are embedded: paperclips, rubber bands, erasers, pencils, a school book, and sports tickets. There are also clear plastic shelves displaying Apple’s laptop line-up. On the window glass itself are white letters with, "Reading. Writing. Rock ‘n Roll."
The space that some iMac models previously occupied in the "Home" section is now filled with foursome of iPods, including the new 4th-generation models that are easy to spot because of their gray control wheel. But supplies of new iPods, iPod Minis and Airport Express devices for sale are still slim.
The on-line Mainichi Daily News reports that "about 1,500" persons were in-line for the 10 a.m. opening of the Ginza (Tokyo) Apple store for the iPod Mini debut event, rivaling the attendance for the store’s Nov. 2003 grand opening (almost 1,500 in line). The story also said "tens of thousands" of iPod Minis have already been reserved by customers, presumably both on-line and in-person.
A MacCentral article has some photos of the Ginza iPod Mini event, and says the first person in line arrived at 8:30 p.m. on Friday. According to this story, an iPod Mini costs 26,800 yen ($244.19) at the store, before a 5% "consumption" tax. That’s about the mid-point in the exchange rate for yen during the past 6 months (104-114 yen to the U.S. dollar).
Still another story on the Australian "ARN" Web site noted Apple’s estimate of 1,500 persons in line, and a remarks by former stateside manager Steve Cano, who is now the retail regional director for Japan.
Thanks to Deb for the collection of great photos of The Grove (S. Calif.) grand opening.
In his latest "Byte of the Apple" column, Business Week writer Alex Salkever says that China is gadget crazy, and Apple should push sales of its iPods within the country. Salkever writes, "How about an Apple flagship store in Beijing or Shanghai to whip up interest in the iPod line and other digital lifestyle accessories?" As you recall, I revealed last May that Apple already is considering a retail store in China.
I can’t make it, but if you’re near the Ginza Apple store this Saturday, drop by for an iPod Mini debut event, featuring commemorative T-shirts for the first 1,000 persons.
More specific information is slowly arriving about the Regent Street (London) store, including that there will be four theaters inside the retail area, and another four classrooms for formal, fee-based training, similar to the Ginza store. Also, the space being leased by Apple includes a basement, but like the San Francisco store, it will not be part of the retail space, but will be used for storage and other back-of-office space. Lastly, Apple has hinted that the store will have some "neat features," which is expected to include the now-trademark glass staircase to the second floor. However, there are continuing hints that the front door will be something special.
Individual jobs listings have now appeared on Apple’s Web site for the South Shore Mall (Mass.) future retail store. The location appeared on the Web site without any open positions over the weekend.