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Apple Watch to Be Sold at All U.S. Target Stores by October 25
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And we know your statement is true because????
FYI - I see, at least one person each day wearing an Apple Watch (I am out and about quite often). I also have two students who've bought one in the past few weeks - ironically they were both bought at Best Buy.
I'm not sure what you mean by you guys change your mouth so fast. I assume that "people like me" say one thing and then another later? I understand you may not be specifically targeting me but you did reply to my comment. So all I can do is respond to that as if we had a previous conversation where I did say it could only be sold in high end boutiques. Well, I never said that or ever commented on them doing that. This is the first time I have offered my opinion on this matter honestly. I don't really care where they sell it. They can sell it from high end boutiques to walmart for all it matters to me. I enjoy the product, not the marketing surrounding it or the stores they choose to sell it in.
I'm not sure how I got lumped into "these guys" that flip flop on such important matters as where apple chooses to sell its product.
As to your question I have no idea why they choose certain stores in the beginning that could sell it. Perhaps a slow rollout? I don't know. I just know that I, as in me personally and not speaking for anyone else, never viewed it as some high end fashion accessory.
And as a side note as to not leave "these guys" undefended one is allowed to change their opinion later when they realize something new or different about their earlier said opinion.
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Sorry.. I was not meaning to single you out. I was meaning generally the Apple worshippers.
When Apple started marketing campaign of Watch.. the steps the followed:
1. Angela Ahrendts from Burberry ... (subtle meaning.. we are going high end fashion). Otherwise why hire somebody from fashion industry to run a technology retail space?
2. Please don't tell me that all these analysts predicting Apple giving trouble to Swiss watch companies unless they are being fed by Apple. There are numerous articles mentioning Mr. Ive telling that Swiss watch makers are in trouble because of Apple Watch. Knowing that Apple Watch price, we know whom he was targeting.
3. Then the roll out! Oh My! Only high end fashion stores outside of Apple Stores.. Really? Is the watch that special and sell it in the stores that don't sell iPhones? What is so special that only rich people can pay to buy $350+ watch when every normal person is buying iPhones in the similar price range. I will tell you why? Because they thought rich won't mind spending this much money just to be unique. But I guess that fell flat.
4. Now we are seeing watches at Best Buy and Target. When the iPhones are already at these stores, I don't see why Apple couldn't have use the same supply chain route to sell watches. Anyways, the Apple Watch need iPhone.
At the end, it's an watch made out of technology is only suitable for geeks (not in any offending way!). So it will be popular only in Silicon valley or techie areas. Not in any fashion industry. Hope, Apple realizes it sooner!
Apple is not going to lower prices, that would be too obvious a move of desperation and negative headlines would be all over the place. Making the device more accessible and appeal to a wider audience is a much smarter idea than lowering prices. Being the Apple fan that you are, you should know Apple does not lower prices in the manner you're suggesting. If/When a price drop does happen, it coincides with a new product release. The Apple Watch is a bust, anyone who's not an ADF (Apple Defense Force) member called it before it's release.
I can agree with some of your points. I guess at end of day companies have hopes for a product and either it falls flat or they adjust their expectations or how they offer that product to the public.
I don't really know. They could have chose to not stock targets and best buys because of the amount of stock they would need to put it in all those stores and instead went with smaller types of chains until they had enough. At this point its conjecture.
Either way no worries. I take no true offense to anything you said. =]
And let's not forget that Best Buy expanded Watch to all its stores. Why would they expand to all their stores and dedicate floor space to a product that is a flop and no one wants?
Since when are Apple retail stores considered high end boutiques?
Since when are Apple retail stores considered high end boutiques?
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I remember the days when I had to make an appointment just to buy a Commodore 64. I remember sitting in a small waiting room of a building at the back of an industrial park, while they went to fetch the box.Premium products and Target - never used those words together
It looks like Apple is pulling out all stops to increase sales. Long gone are the days that you needed to make an appointment at apple just to view the watch. Why a stark difference from then to now.
Apple lowered the price of the original iPhone by $200 74 days after its launch. Making the product available across a wider distribution network and expanding the product line aren't signs of failure. They are signs of success.
So I guess iPhones and iPads aren't "premium products" because they're sold at Target too you know. And yeah now that there aren't supply constraints it's easier to see and buy the Watch. What's so surprising about that?!?Premium products and Target - never used those words together
It looks like Apple is pulling out all stops to increase sales. Long gone are the days that you needed to make an appointment at apple just to view the watch. Why a stark difference from then to now.
Swap out Watch for iPhone or iPad. Target sells those too.
Or given all the reports about the QC issues at Qanta and the supply chain constraints, Apple concluded it couldn't do a massive introduction, but since it promised the Watch in "Early 2015" it decided it had to do some sort of launch, and limited the distribution chain to what it could reasonably ship? Given that it took over 2 months before there was enough supply even for Apple's own retail stores, isn't this a more logical explanation?
Because BestBuy and Target weren't worthy of such a premium product. I think Apple realized that the demographic they were shooting for didn't jump on the watch like they had hoped.
Now its all about increasing sales, which is why you saw Apple roll out more sport watch models over the SS models. The cheaper sports is more popular it seems - at least I think it is based on my observations.
The iPhone is not the same as the Watch. Not in it's marketing, not in it's purpose. A Mobile phone is a commodity -- everybody needs a phone. Nobody NEEDS an Watch. Apple has gone out of their way to gain acceptance in the fashion world, yet before they even have a firm footing there, they rush the watch into a discount chain store where the customer service and presentation is going to be questionable at best. And what is the logic? Target has 1800+ stores in the US, Best buy has about 1450, not to mention all the mobile phone stores (and it's not like a customer needs to have a particular carrier to buy an Watch from them). Therefore, it's hard to believe that there might be a Target in a town with no other nearby retail options, and likely more qualified, to buy the Watch in person. So I question the rationale behind putting their "most personal" product in the most discount of merchants at this time. ot only that but it will be the most expensive watch Target sells in it's stores by far. The next most expensive Women's watch they sell is an $84.99 Timex, and a $129.99 men's no-name Star Wars watch, or Casio Brand. That's some nice company Apple is sharing.
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Do you know what is Tim Cook's speciality in Apple before being CEO? If he couldn't forsee that, then I will be damned!
Except that apple positioned the watch as a premium product, i.e., just look at how they were marketing it prior the roll out. There's no way they would have been in those high end fashion magazines if they didn't consider it a premium product. Also look at the Apple Watch Edition, again another sign of being a product product.
Seems pretty simple to me:
1) At launch, supplies were tight, demand was somewhat unknown. Apple played it safe, sold online only and at a couple of high-end boutiques (ok I can't rationalize that last part).
2) As supply caught up with demand, and overall sales have been strong (IMO), Apple is looking to continue to increase their sales rate. More channels is the answer. As others have remarked, if Apple had a product that they couldn't even sell enough of in their own stores and online, they wouldn't push it out to more channels. It's really no different to what they did with iPods and iPads.
1) At launch, supplies were tight, demand was somewhat unknown. Apple played it safe, sold online only and at a couple of high-end boutiques (ok I can't rationalize that last part).
2) As supply caught up with demand, and overall sales have been strong (IMO), Apple is looking to continue to increase their sales rate. More channels is the answer. As others have remarked, if Apple had a product that they couldn't even sell enough of in their own stores and online, they wouldn't push it out to more channels. It's really no different to what they did with iPods and iPads.
Right if you didn't see it, it didn't happen. In particular:
http://www.case-mate.com/blogs/blog/44777921-case-mate-on-the-runway-rebecca-minkoff-nyfw-2015
I'm not buying that. Apple wants as many of these on people's wrists as they can sell.
The fashion placement was an attempt to distance themselves from the geeky image of calculator watches and most previous smart watches. But getting it widely available by the holiday shopping season was their plan all along. Some of the decisions they made during the initial launch were affected by supply constraints. And the OS wasn't really finished. Watch OS 2, launched only four months after delivery of the first Apple Watch deliveries suggests that they didn't have everything working well enough at the beginning to support native 3rd party apps.
He's got a few other things to oversee these days. Qanta was a new supplier for the MacBook and Watch, and they had some teething problems.
Apple is trying to have their cake and eat it to, and that's a very fine line to walk. Target's in house designer Massimo, isn't exactly a fixture in Europe's fashion houses. The point being, Apple doesn't seem to have a clear image for their watch, and they need to be careful depending on what their goals are. If they push it into the low-end retailer space, they risk alienating all of the traction they've gained in the fashion world, and designer houses like Hermes are going to be less inclined to get into partnerships. Everything Apple has done with Angela Ahrendts, and all of their fashion hires would suggest they want the watch to be more than just a piece of tech sold at every corner drugstore.
Interesting. Passed that along to friends at corporate as it's not suppose to work that way.