Despite the economic crisis, information from tipsters and other sources indicate no slowdown in Apple store grand openings for the first half of 2009. According to an IFO analysis, at least 11 stores could open between January and June, indicating that 36 stores might open for the entire year, a figure in line with 2005-2007 activity. Historically, [...]

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Apple has riffled through its standard architectural playbook, but still can’t come up with an acceptable storefront design for a proposed retail store on Wisconsin Avenue in the Georgetown district of Washington (DC). According to The Current, a weekly neighborhood newspaper, Apple’s latest design was turned down by two neighborhood boards earlier this month, putting [...]

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Facing an uncertain 2009, and perhaps acknowledging poor December sales, Apple has reduced the number of paid hours for its retail store employees in the United States. Multiple sources say the cut-back will eliminate all hours for part-time employees, leaving only full-time staffers to handle sales and service at the stores some time in January. [...]

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After 15 months of meetings and contentious court filings, the attorneys for two disabled women and Apple Inc. have reached an agreement on a lawsuit alleging the San Francisco store does not meet the requirements of the federal Americans With Disability Act (ADA). As usual with such cases, the terms of the settlement were not [...]

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Apple is switching to new small-product packaging that spotlights the contents with a nearly life-size photo of what’s inside the box. The all-black boxes are are appearing on Apple store shelves, and include the World Travel Adapter Kit, MagSafe Power Adapter and the full line of laptop batteries. The silhouette design makes it easier to [...]

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Apple shoppers in London (Ont.) will receive a New Year’s gift when the local Mostly Digital authorized reseller moves into a new 3,200 square-foot facility next January, right in the middle of a territory with no Apple stores. The company has operated since 1995 as an Apple specialist, and now with Apple’s approval and assistance [...]

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The nearest Apple store is over 2,600 miles away from Dubai (UAE), but shoppers in the country along the Persian Gulf still have a place to find all the latest products and services–the authorized reseller iStyle store at the enormous Dubai Mall. The store features a glass façade that is reminiscent of the Fifth Avenue (NYC) store [...]

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A visitor to the Fifth Avenue (NYC) retail store reports that display computers there are configured to allow access only to a short list of Web sites that includes Apple.com, CNN, the BBC, The New York Times and several other newspapers. “Oops!” says an alert flashed by the OS X parental controls feature if you [...]

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The showcase Apple retail stores are one reason the company will no longer participate in the annual Macworld Conference and Exposition in San Francisco, the company announced late Tuesday in a short statement. The company said that Sr. VP of worldwide marketing Philip Schiller will give the final keynote speech at January’s Macworld in San Francisco, [...]

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All of Georgia’s Apple stores are clustered within a 27-mile circle north and east of Atlanta, but not for long. Apple will open a retail store at the Augusta Mall in that city, 125 miles east of Atlanta. The 1.1 million square-foot mall along Interstate 20 is operated by General Growth Properties, and features 134 [...]

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Apple will fill in coverage of its retail stores in the area south of Puget Sound (Wash.) when they locate a store inside the Tacoma Mall in that city. The mall is located along Interstate 5, and has just completed a 100,000 square-foot lifestyle expansion where Apple may locate. The Seattle region is now served [...]

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The local Apple reseller in Santa Barbara (Calif.) may see his sales drop 30 percent in the first year after a new Apple retail store opens in the city next Spring. The CraigSmithBlog.com Web site interviewed Mac Mechanic owner Mike Bishop, who estimates Apple is spending $2 million to reconstruct the building at 928 State [...]

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The battle for customers among Apple retailers is heating up, with prices posted at on-line resellers dropping below the only discount that Apple offers–for education customers. The price competition means that price-matching at Apple’s retail stores is now even more important for the company to maintain the retail segment’s revenues. Reseller MacMall has “slashed” prices [...]

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A huge crowd packed the plaza in front of the new Rosenstrasse (Munich) retail store Saturday morning to await the moment when the door swung open for the first time. The weather was cold, but there was no rain or snow to dampen the spirits of the crowd. There were reportedly 4,000 visitors to the [...]

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There’s a festive holiday mood in front of the Apple store on Rosenstrasse in Munich (Germany), as passersby stare into the windows where workers are making final preparation for Saturday morning’s grand opening. Several buildings are outlined with lights and the nearby Marienplatz square is decorated with a huge iPod nano “dripping colors” poster. On [...]

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