A master’s degree candidate at the University of North Texas will open an unusual exhibition of photos this weekend—snapshots taken by Macs, iPads and iPhones at Apple’s retail stores. Irby Pace traveled to stores in New York City and Texas during 2010 to collect the photos, taken by the subjects themselves while mugging at the camera. Irby told Wired.com‘s Pete Brook that the exhibit is entitled “Unintended Consequences” and “explores changes in behavior for those people who have not considered how these images may be used.” Pace defends his use of the photos showing adults and children, which he notes were consciously taken by the subjects, left behind and therefore were “abandoned” for any artistic use. In 2010 another art project generated an FBI visit to the artist who installed software on several computers in New York City area Apple stores, collecting random photos. The FBI seized Kyle McDonald’s computers and hard drives and investigated his computer intrusions, but he was never charged. Pace’s exhibition opens February 5th at the Cora Stafford Gallery in Denton (Tex.).
The historic and now-remodeled Pasadena (S. Calif.) retail store will re-open this Saturday, with more space and a reconfigured interior. The store opened in January 2003 in the city’s main, upscale shopping district. The storefront was modified slightly in 2006 to remove the original black metal panels and back-lit Apple logos on either side of the entrance. Then last April a temporary store opened a few doors away, and the original location closed. According to permit documents filed with the city, the construction added 3,164 square-feet by tacking on a rear, second-level space that will be occupied by back-of-house operations. The work added back floor space that was removed when the store was originally built, so the ceiling height could be raised. Presumably the public retail space will now extend nearly to the back of the building, and back-of-house operations will be housed in the second-level addition. The original glass wall dividers and wood floor has probably also been removed. The store re-opening is set for 10 a.m. photos
Ending a six-month international search for someone with the necessary skills and enthusiasm to carry Apple’s retail stores through its next 10 years, the company announced late Monday that it has appointed John Browett as Sr. vice-president of the Retail segment. Browett, 47, is a British citizen who is CEO of Dixons Retail plc, a UK-based electronics retailer. He graduated from Cambridge University (UK), and also attended The Wharton School, a graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania, variously ranked as the #1 business school in the United States. His appointment will test whether someone from another style of retailing can adopt Apple’s culture and philosophy of product sales and customer service. More importantly, Browett’s appointment will largely determine the path of Apple retail at a crticial period in its evolution: 10 years and growing internationally, with crowded Genius Bars and pressures on customer service quality. read more / chart
Hoping to discourage scalpers and the Beijing-like waiting line scuffles, Apple has ended walk-in purchases of the iPhone 4s at the IFC Mall (Hong Kong) store, replacing it with a daily lottery procedure. Economic conditions and demand for the iPhone 4s in China has created throngs of paid line-sitters who squeeze out ordinary buyers, sometimes creating disputes that must be broken up by police. The line-sitters funnel their purchases to gray market dealers who sell the handsets in small cities in China and wholesale them to dealers in other countries. Previously, iPhone buyers could walk into the IFC Mall store anytime and make a purchase, contingent upon there being a supply. Now, all buyers must surf to a special sign-up Web page from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. each day. On that page, the buyer will chose a store location and iPhone model, and then enter their personal information. The purchase system will then check the available iPhone stock, and if one is available, will send the buyer an email by 9 p.m. the day before the pick-up day. Besides the Apple store, the iPhone 4s is available at the on-line Hong Kong Apple store and at various resellers.
The only thing on Esther Gonzalez‘ mind as she took the bus to work on Chicago’s north side in 2010 was transferring from one bus to another. She knew nothing about the Lincoln Park Apple store construction, the scaffolding industry or insurance contracts. But she was about to learn. On March 17, the Apple store was under construction on a triangular plot of land on the city’s north side. The project was adjacent to the busy Red Line Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) subway station, which Apple had agreed to remodel for $4 million. But all that construction work interfered with the bus stops adjacent to the station, forcing the CTA to move Gonzalez’ usual stop from one end of the block to another. That forced Gonzalez into the street, where she allegedly fell and broke her hip, and where her odyssey with lawyers and and the world of insurance began. read more / diagram
A Maryland judge sentenced a convicted murdered to life in prison without parole on Friday, but also took the occasion to express his outrage at Bethesda Row Apple store employees who heard the victim’s cries for help from the adjacent store, but did nothing. The family of victim Jayna Murray also criticized Apple and its employees, saying after the sentencing that they have never received any words of sympathy or apology from at the company. Montgomery County Circuit Judge Robert Greenberg’s voice showed anger while describing killer Brittany Norwood as, “cold-blooded… brutal… calculated… deliberate… devious… malicious.” Norwood was an employee of Lululemon in March 2011, and was apparently caught stealing a pair of yoga pants after-hours by co-worker Jayna Murray. Norwood attacked Murray, inflicting at least 330 wounds with various objects, police said. Judge Greenberg also turned his anger on Apple store employees, including manager Jana Svrzo. In testimony during the trial, Svrzo admitted the employees had heard a disturbance next door, and someone screaming, ”Oh, god, please help me.” However, none of the employees inquired next door or called police. During his sentencing speech, Greenberg said, “The callous indifference of those Apple store employees. They did not do a blessed thing.” After killing Murray, Norwood tied herself up, wounded herself slightly, and told police that two men had robbed the store and killed Murray. However, her story unraveled within a week and she was charged with murder. Svrzo and Apple have declined to comment about the incident or the employees’ inaction. It’s not clear if Svrzo still works for Apple. video
All the signs and banners said “JC Penney,” but during the company’s press presentation Wednesday, there were plenty of references to Apple and its retail stores. During the 90-minute briefing, former Apple retail chief Ron Johnson explained his plans to remake JCP into “America’s favorite store” over the next three years, admittedly drawing from his 10-year stewardship of Apple’s stores. In fact, the very first item on Johnson’s agenda was to explain why he left Apple, and the very first presentation slide was an Apple logo. read more…
In the world of Apple retail secrets, even the revelation of a single number is significant. In this case, a story in the Business Record outlined the commercial retail market in the Des Moines (Iowa) region, including at the Jordan Creek Town Center, where an Apple store is located. Tyler Dingel of the firm CBRE/Hubbell Commercial told a reporter that the 3,000-square-foot Apple store at the mall generates about $25 million in sales, a figure that Apple would never divulge. Dingel didn’t mention the time period for those sales—quarterly or annual. However, the figure probably is based on quarterly sales, since Apple’s latest average per-store revenues were $17.1 million. In fact, that average is heavily weighted at the top end by high-profile and other large stores, making the Jordan Creek store’s sales even more impressive when compared to other smaller stores.
Apple has one of the most valuable brands in the world, and the company’s retail stores are arguably the most successful method of promoting that brand. In fact, the company has designated 20 of its stores as “high-profile,” and has expensed certain brand awareness expenses for these locations to the corporate ledger, and not the Retail segment. But according to an Apple filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today, that accounting policy is ending without explanation. “Prior to 2012, the Company allocated to corporate expenses certain costs associated with its high-profile retail stores that have been designed and built to promote brand awareness and serve as vehicles for corporate sales and marketing activities,” Apple stated in its filing. It then explained, “Starting with fiscal 2012, the Company no longer allocates these costs to corporate expenses.” Further, Apple also said it retroactively reclassified $24 million in fourth quarter 2011 high-profile store expenses from corporate back to the Retail segment. The accounting change won’t substantially affect Retail segment financials. The company has expensed an average of $95 million a year over the past four years to corporate for high-profile stores—just 1.3 percent of the Retail segment’s latest quarterly profit, which totaled $1.8 billion. The accounting change wasn’t mentioned by Apple executives during yesterday’s quarterly conference call with analysts to announce Apple financial results.
Apple’s retail stores achieved new records for sales, profit and visitors during the holiday quarter, helping the company reach overall goals that defied the overall personal computer market. Revenue for the stores was $6.1 billion, up 59 percent compared to the same quarter of 2010, while profit soared to $1.8 billion, up 30.8 percent. Sales of Mac computers at the stores reached a new record of 1.1 million, with about half new to the Mac. Visitor traffic of 110 million in the pre-holiday period established a new record. Overall, Apple reported records in almost every category—revenue, profit and sales of iPhones, iPads and Macs. Only iPod sales declined during the quarter, as customers shifted to the more versatile iPhone. Revenue for the quarter was $46.33 billion, and profit was $13.06 billion. Sales of the iPhone were up 128 percent compared to the same quarter of 2010, and Mac sales were up 26 percent. Sales of iPads increased 111 percent from the year-ago quarter, but sales of iPods declined 21 percent. In a conference call with analysts, CEO Peter Oppenheimer mentioned the new EZ Pay and Personal Pickup services at the stores, and how they’ve streamlined purchases. But he gave no specific figures for how many customers used the services during the quarter. Oppenheimer did not mention any new retail stores that are opening soon, or how many would open during fiscal 2012. read more…
After a year of rumors, two future stores in France may be on schedule for a 2012 grand opening. According to the MacGeneration Web site, Apple has filed an application to operate a retail business at the Quatre Temps shopping center northwest of city center, at the La Défense complex of office buildings, a train station, museum and other retailers. The area is a tourist destination, but also is a crossroads for thousands of daily office workers. The exact location of the store within the shopping isn’t know, but it could open by year’s end. Meanwhile, in Strasbourg a passerby has noticed increased activity at a retail space at Aubette in city center, possibly indicating the start of construction for an Apple store. The building dates to 1765 as a military barracks, but has hosted all types of commercial enterprises since then. In 2008 some ground floor space was converted to retail, where Apple’s store could open by year’s end.
According to a just-released Apple report on supplier responsibility, at least 156 companies provide materials to help create the company’s products. But it’s little known that an almost equal number of companies contribute materials to create the company’s retail stores. Drawing upon a wide range of sources, IFO has compiled a list of 141 companies both big and small that contribute every last object that Apple store visitors see, and many that they don’t see. The companies are headquartered around the world in at least six countries. The products range from ordinary coat hooks used in the back-of-house, to the specially-formulated, low-iron glass in the stores’ display windows. Some companies, like General Electric (glazing sealant), are a household name. But others, like Pawling Corp. (wall guards), are virtually unknown beyond the world of architects and designers. When building its stores, Apple is very particular about every aspect, either requiring specific brands and models for parts and materials, or providing standard construction material specifications for contractors to strictly follow. Apple’s devotion to design means that step stools, filing cabinets, lighting fixtures and even toilet seats are the same across the entire chain. supplier list
A passerby took this amazing photo of the interior of the SoHo (NYC) Apple retail store in the midst of its complete reconstruction and expansion. This view from the front of the building on Prince Street shows the original five front steps in the foreground (covered with metal), support scaffolding and tons of new structural steel. The final store will be larger by incorporating about 5,000 square-feet that was vacated last year by the U.S. Postal Service at the rear of this space. Otherwise, this view seems to indicate that the store will re-open with a nearly identical interior configuration and design, including the glass staircase and skylight. It’s possible the store could open by the end of 2012. Click on the photo for a larger view. (photo by Michael)
The chairman of a New York City real estate firm may have slipped up when he told a newspaper reporter that Apple’s real estate team approached him several months ago, and is now in preliminary talks to open a retail store along Austin Street in Forest Hills, Queens. Yeheskel Elias told the New York Daily News that, “I will do anything I can to bring Apple in.” Elias did not provide details of his talks with Apple, or mention specifically where Apple was scouting. Apple usually demands confidentiality for its real estate dealings, so Elias’ comments are significant. The company even posted a copy of the newspaper article on the “Press” page of its Web site. Austin Street runs for about three miles through the center of the Forest Hills neighborhood of Queens. The area is a mix of national retailers along Austin Street, and residential homes and apartments beyond. The Heskel Group manages several properties along Austin Street, including stores occupied by Ann Taylor Loft, Staples, Gap, Duane Reade and The Disney Store. Several of the properties would fulfill Apple’s requirements, including the 22,000 square-foot, two-level building that houses the Gap store. There are existing Apple stores in Manhattan and Staten Island, but none in the other boroughs of New York City. There have been several rumors of future stores in the Bronx over the years, but no current projects have been spotted.
The state of Tennessee has reportedly won a ticket in Apple’s 2012 retail store lottery, with the selection of the Cool Springs Galleria for a store south of Nashville. Apple executives have said the company will open about 40 stores during fiscal 2012, with only about 10 lucky locations within the United States. According to the Cool Springs News, tipsters say that existing tenant Abercrombie will vacate space #1585 within a week. Mall manager CBL & Associates Properties Inc. reportedly declined to renew Abercrombie’s lease, opting to bring Apple to the mall. By April, construction will begin on installing an Apple store within the 9,316 square-foot space. The store, sporting an 85-foot wide storefront, could open by September. The mall sits alongside Interstate 65, and within an upscale region at the top end of Apple’s usual average household income demographic—over $114,000. Update: The Cool Springs News has said Apple will also take over the 4,524 square-foot Brooks Brothers space, for a total of 13,840 square-foot, a truly enormous store for a shopping mall location. map/mall plan
