Future Stores Will Be Bigger, Johnson Says

According to Ron Johnson, “Our stores are too small.” That may be hard to believe, since the Sr. V-P for Apple Retail was standing in the largest single interior space of any Apple store on the planet, the Upper West Side (NYC) store set to open on Saturday at 10 a.m. But he was serious, telling reporters at a press briefing for the new location that future stores will be larger. On Thursday there were more cleaning activities, both inside and out. Scaffolding and scissor lifts hoisted workers into the top levels of the front glass, as passersby continued to gawk and make comments. By 8 p.m. equipment was in place to begin cleaning the Italian stone floor one more time. View a gallery of today’s photos, and follow the grand opening events live at twitter/ifostore.

A closer look at the store’s architecture shows that the Broadway side may appear to be entirely squared-up at right angles. However, all of the angles are actually lined up with 67th Street, which comes into Broadway at a diagonal. The inset entrance is cut at an angle, and the tall glass support fins attached to the façade are similarly angled.

What appear to be 55-foot tall glass panels at the storefront are actually three separate pieces, bonded together to appear as one taller piece. It’s an expensive process to bond the laminated sections together, and one only Apple would use to preserve the aesthetic of the store.

With a glass ceiling and uninterrupted stone walls, the obvious question is—how is the store ventilated? The answer to that question may rest in three areas: slit panels at the base of the windows, holes in the stone floor beneath the display tables, and similar holes in the stainless steel panels underneath the sidewall display counters.

The ShopperTrak system for tracking customer visits has been installed, although you must look very closely to find it. A video surveillance system is also present.

The day started out drizzling and cold, but by late afternoon the rain was gone. The store continued to draw the attention of Upper West side residents. One passerby could only muster, “Wow!” Others were curious why there appears to be only one level, not seeing the glass staircase to a lower level.

A fire annunciator panel mandated by the city’s fire code sits to the right of the entrance, with a small display showing where any fire alarms have originated.

The employee and delivery entrance is on 67th Street, east of Broadway. An elevator isn’t visible, but is apparently behind one of the two stainless steel doors at the back of the space.

The store is one of the few high-profile store not to have an overhead or aerial view of the store interior. In this case, the only overhead view is of the lower level, and is restricted by a relatively small passage opening in the ground-level floor. The opening at Fifth Avenue (NYC) appears to be wider and obstructs a visitor’s down-going view much less.

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