Yes, we know that the Apple Store, as a concept, has been a success. But, prior to today, has anyone ever explored why, exactly, it works so well? Thank goodness for the New York Times! After all, these Times demand the Times.
Some numbers for you to consider:
• Twenty percent of Apple’s revenue comes from the Apple Store
• Apple made $1.25B at the Apple Store in the fourth quarter of this year, which is 42 percent more than last year
• Apple makes $4,000 per square foot of Apple Store surface area every year
So the store works well, it can be said. When you compare it to retail in general and high-tech retail specifically, then the numbers shine even brighter. The Times pokes fun at the Manhattan Sony, Nokia and Samsung retail stores.
Knowing this, why, then, is the store so successful. Take your pick: the Apple Store is designed rather attractively; the staff is both friendly and knowledgeable; the Store is in desirable locations; you can buy things from those guys with the portable credit card swiping machine (that’s how I got my nano, as a matter of fact and was thrilled that I could leave the store in under two minutes).
I don’t know that you’ll find me going to the Apple Store “just because,” but if I’m in the area and need to kill a couple of minutes, you’re damn right you can find me tolling around with an iPod Touch or browsing the Internet on a MacBook.
Inside Apple Stores, a Certain Aura Enchants the Faithful [New York Times]
There are a lot of little things that make the Apple store so attractive, but I think it boils down to two things really. Service and decor. Their techs are actually well trained…they send each of their Genius Bar techs to Cupertino for 2 weeks of training or something like that. People who work there like and use the product they sell, so instead of hiring and training salesmen, they get people who actually believe in the product to pitch it to you. From an ergonomic standpoint, the store is very well designed. Lots of ambient light, most of the displays are at a good height, clutter is minimized…it’s just an attractive place to be. Plus, when you throw in the trendiness factor, it’s no wonder they do more sales per square foot than Best Buy or even Tiffany’s. I haven’t read the NYT article yet, but I can tell you that there have been articles that have tried to pinpoint the reason for the Apple stores’ success, and none of them have quite hit the mark yet. We’ll see if the NYT does any better, but somehow I doubt that liberal rag has managed to get it right.
Walking into a Sony store I get all the service of a Best Buy with the design layout of a Circuit City while being allowed to pay full price for the same products that are discounted at Best Buy or Circuit City. So why would anyone go to a Sony store? The same goes with other stores from Nokia or Samsung. They just don’t get it. Apple does.
Apple store in Naples, FL is the most intimidating store I have been in. Clerks every eight feet. iPhones were roped off and you had to ask a clerk to hand you one.
I have owned Macs since an SE-30, and was very disappointed, because I had heard nothing but raves.
I think this store was staffed for one triple the size.
Its the iphones.
They’ve got all those pretty smartphones sitting just inside.
And it’s the design. You look everywhere and its cluttered compared to an Apple store. It feels like you just walked into a 30th century country club of the future. It just feels right.
And then once they’ve hooked you in they do everything right.
-No annoying helpers constantly asking you if you need help, no one bugging -you.
-Everyone’s smiling. The workers actually [i]are[/i] happy to be there
-The demo’s work. No fake best-buy shit here. Only genuine quality
-They make it easy to shop, if you are indeed buying. Portable scanners. duh.
-They have Apple products. This one’s obvious, but important. If it was like samsung stuff, you wouldn’t be shopping there. Because it would suck.
[written on brand-new christmas macbook]
I actually work at one and we DO love our jobs! They hire incredible people that make incredible experiences for the customer. Of course they want us to sell, but the main thing that we learn in our training is creating a great customer experience; from the warm welcome to the fond farewell and invite to return. So, set up a personal shopping at your local Apple store and come on in to receive the whole experience. You’ll be glad you did.