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rtomyj

macrumors 6502a
Sep 3, 2012
812
753
I'll never forget the fond memories...

That brilliant debut stage performance when she slipped the word "cervix" instead of service...
Her fashionable appearances at store openings that lasted mere minutes before disappearing back into the void.
The beautiful tree gardens in Apple "squares" - formally known as what they really were, "stores."
Her inclusive ideas of "girls only" coding classes - I know the boys all loved this one.
Those divine watch counters within department stores... her attempt to turn Apple into a fashion statement.
And finally, her olympic sized stock packages she was given to do absolutely nothing original.

Take care, your excellence. En Taro Tassadar.

And when she was hired all she really had to do was focus on opening a **** ton of new stores. There are people that don’t have access to support. Instead support quality decreased!
 
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cast128

macrumors regular
Jul 24, 2003
150
92
Colorado
She will be missed

I’m not sure why. I think the experience at Apple retail stores has degraded significantly over her leadership. When my local Apple store opened in 2002 I loved to go there. It was an interactive experience and getting service / support was head and shoulders above what it has become. It is very unfortunate and I hope new leadership will return Apple retail to what it once was - enjoyable.
 

Attonine

macrumors 6502a
Feb 15, 2006
744
58
Kent. UK
I hate the Genius “Groves”. It’s awful being told to wait in a fairly non descript area and watch the employees marching around aimlessly calling out names. Everyone longingly eyeing the employees going that it is their name that will be called.

Much preferred the Genius Bar. The screens scrolling appointments and names and also a clear location to aim for when you had an appointment.
 

Bawstun

Suspended
Jun 25, 2009
2,374
2,999
5 years and what did she do?

Genius Bar to Genius “Grove” ooooh - how edgy, removing the name “bar” as if that draws back to liquor or shady establishments.

Removed many third-party accessories (a reason people came into the Apple store - to shop their wall of products)

And introduced meaningless classes and artist lesson group things which almost no one uses or finds useful - except for older people, which Apple shouldn’t be targeting as their primary customer anyway.

She was awful for the company. Changed nothing. Store experience actually worsened.

Lesson: don’t hire fashion brand CEO’s as tech brand customer service people. Anyone with common sense could see what an awful pairing it would be. LOL
 

Bawstun

Suspended
Jun 25, 2009
2,374
2,999
Genius Groves?????? In my opinion, she ruined the Genius Bar. Appointments mean nothing. Walk-ins get the same priority. Used to be that you made the appointment and they were ready for you at the assigned time. Buh Bye.

Good points. The customer service side of stores really did take a huge drop. She tried to implement classes and other things that weren’t needed or shouldn’t have been the focus. Complete disaster.
 

dontwalkhand

macrumors 603
Jul 5, 2007
6,382
2,868
Phoenix, AZ
I actually liked the surety of a central Point of Sale, sure it's cool to flag down any rando employee and hope they can get want you want if you manage to make eye contact with them or they aren't busy finishing an iPhone sale and setup (and all you want is a doo-dad), but when you can just go stand in line and know you'll be able to check out, that is "priceless"... also it seems water fountains have disappeared at some of the new stores (even bathrooms)...

I welcome another perspective on what makes a good shopping experience: water, bathrooms, and a clearly discernible checkout.
Nah I hate lines. Bathrooms I agree. But checkout I wish all stores went this route.
 

triton100

macrumors 6502a
Dec 15, 2010
782
1,313
The moon
I'll never forget the fond memories...

That brilliant debut stage performance when she slipped the word "cervix" instead of service...
Her fashionable appearances at store openings that lasted mere minutes before disappearing back into the void.
The beautiful tree gardens in Apple "squares" - formally known as what they really were, "stores."
Those divine watch counters within department stores... her attempt to turn Apple into a fashion statement.
And finally, her olympic sized stock packages she was given to do absolutely nothing original.

Take care, your excellence. En Taro Tassadar.
AMEN. talk about emperors new clothes..
 
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joueboy

macrumors 68000
Jul 3, 2008
1,576
1,545
The way I look at Angela is just like the famous coach selected to coach the "Dream Team" packed with allstar players.
 

AngerDanger

Graphics
Staff member
Dec 9, 2008
5,452
29,003
I, for one, will really miss her incredibly dry Keynote delivery. Where will they ever find somebody so—wait, just slap a wig on Cook and it'll be business as usual!

Tim Cook With Wig to Replace Angela.gif
 

WaxedJacket

macrumors 6502a
Oct 18, 2013
690
1,071
Genius Groves?????? In my opinion, she ruined the Genius Bar. Appointments mean nothing. Walk-ins get the same priority. Used to be that you made the appointment and they were ready for you at the assigned time. Buh Bye.
Exactly my issue with the Apple Store now. It's just a big cluster-f of IT support sucking up 99% of the floor employees when your appointment was to just pick up the new iPhone. My 5 minute in-n-out experience went to 45+ minutes on week days at my local Apple Store. It's just not a fun experience or one I look forward to like I used to. In the good will of wanting to help every customer with everything, they turned their store into an unfocused traffic jam of off the street loiterers checking facebook, grandparents backing up their devices, and people who are just looking to get assistance in purchasing the next iThing. /rant
 

bjet767

Suspended
Oct 2, 2010
967
319
I think many seem to forget this one fact, Apple was never in the business to give away anything. Steve Jobs sold stuff and never gave away a thing.

The issue for all businesses is to maximize profits and I would place money the Apple Stores under her leadership did not live up to the expectations of the top brass. In the end it comes down to $$$ and year over year sales and growth.

Personally I like the atmosphere of the stores and it seems like when I stop to buy or have something fixed so do a whole lot of people. Contrast and Apple to a Microsoft Store in the same location and one will hear crickets at the MS one.

BTW I would not be surprised to see an announcement this year of the "strategic" closing of multiple Apple Stores. It's just part of our business culture.
 

macduke

macrumors G5
Jun 27, 2007
13,173
19,753
I thought she was okay. I don't like how obsessed she was with turning Apple into a top luxury brand (at least I think she was a driving force behind that?). I'm fine with Apple being a premium brand, but it shouldn't be out of reach for 90% of people or whatever. She did a lot to improve the retail experience. I know a guy who worked for Apple during the John Browett era and said it was miserable. What a bad hire that was. I think a good successor would be someone who is a blend of Ron Johnson and Angela Ahrendts, with a small twist of their own uniqueness thrown into the mix. Hopefully this person would want to make Apple technology more accessible to the masses and have a healthy respect for the Mac.
 
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