Apple's First Retail Stores Opened 25 Years Ago Today

[MacRumors]

Apple's retail operation turns 25 years old today, marking a quarter century since the company opened its first stores on May 19, 2001.

Steve Jobs personally guided members of the press through the Tysons Corner store four days before it opened, after Apple announced the retail initiative on May 15. Some 500 visitors lined up before dawn on opening day, with the queue growing to over 1,000 by the time the doors opened at 10 a.m. The two stores, located at Tysons Corner Center in McLean, Virginia and Glendale Galleria in California, welcomed over 7,700 visitors and recorded $599,000 in combined sales across their opening weekend.

The decision to enter brick-and-mortar retail came at a precarious moment for Apple. With a market share hovering around 2.8%, the company was struggling to showcase its products through third-party retailers, where Macs were routinely relegated to dusty corners staffed by clerks with limited product knowledge. Jobs believed Apple would never shed its "cult" image unless it controlled the entire customer experience right down to the point of purchase. As he told Walter Isaacson for his biography: "Unless we could find ways to get our message to customers at the store, we were screwed."

To lead the retail push, Jobs recruited Ron Johnson, who had transformed Target's image with his designer merchandise line. Together they refined the store concept in a secret warehouse prototype, working through every detail from the single-entrance layout to the Genius Bar, which Johnson modeled on the service experience at Ritz-Carlton hotels. Gap CEO Mickey Drexler, who had joined Apple's board in 1999, also played a key role in shaping the retail vision.

Skepticism was widespread at the time. Apple's sales had dropped 29% the previous year, Gateway had just shuttered 40 of its own stores, and Channel Marketing analyst David Goldstein publicly predicted Apple would be "turning out the lights on a very painful and expensive mistake" within two years.

By 2003, Apple was recording $3 million in profit per store, per quarter, with approximately 60,000 visitors at each location. Apple Retail hit $1.2 billion in revenue in 2004, breaking the record for the fastest retail operation to reach a billion-dollar milestone. The company today operates more than 500 stores across 27 countries, with each location generating approximately $5,500 per square foot annually, among the highest figures in the retail industry.

The original Tysons Corner store relocated and reopened in a larger, redesigned space within the same mall in May 2023. Apple retail stores in both Tysons Corner and Glendale Galleria locations remain open today.

Article Link: Apple's First Retail Stores Opened 25 Years Ago Today

 

[t0rqx]

These stores are starting (or already are) to become meaningless. The employees are sales oriented and only serve the stupid customers.

Ask them a general or specific question and you will not get a correct answer.

The title Genius is meaningless ten years ago.

I have a cousin working for hardware at Apple, the AVP was also made in mind to create a virtual environment to test out Apple products in a virtual Apple Store (the app was being redesigned for this purpose), and slowly closing down Apple Stores around the world. Apple knows the lack of knowledge and the money that flows out of their treasure chest at these Stores is too much.

Employees working at the stores have their job extended now. Angela was ousted from retail because Cook banked on the success of AVP on the long term. High profitable device and saving money by reducing cashflow to physical Apple Stores.

The plan was to reduce physical stores by 50% worldwide in established locations (within 15 years) and only introduce limited new stores in emerging markets, if AVP was a success with the new Apple Store app in mind.

 

[Spock]

I remember watching this tour with Steve Jobs, I knew the Apple Store was going to be huge. It was and still is the best way to purchase an Apple product in person. I remember going to stores like CompUSA and employees would actively talk perspective Apple buyers into a PC instead.

 

[AppleMega]

I'm still in line. How much longer!?

 

[kemal]

My first Apple Store was the original one in Chicago. It had the glass staircase. Its footprint was blocked off due to up skirting issues. best intentions oh well...

 

[Spec360]

My first Apple Store was the original one in Chicago. It had the glass staircase. Its footprint was blocked off due to up skirting issues. best intentions oh well...

Damn I’m old

 

[Unity451]

They were cool then. It was fun too explore, learn, and just visit because each one had their own character. They're now sterile and soulless. If you've been to one, you've been to them all.

 

[switz]

As long as the money stream is incoming at each store, they will remain open. The Cook mindset of looking for every penny is how Apple is one of the most valuable companies in our history.

It seems most folks walk in and announce what they want to buy and what the stock is for the item of their interest. The response of the Apple employee is to enter the order on his special model iPhone and a clerk in the store room brings out the item. There are some times a limp offer to transfer data, but most folks take the unopened box home.

This scenario requires zero technical knowledge other than the ability to enter a part number onto an iPhone screen.

Just a few employees need to know how to walk and chew gum at the same time and also have some technical training.

Sadly, a humanoid robot could do that order taking and delivery of an unopened box....

Coming soon to an Apple Store near you......

 

[dreamerstree]

My first Mac came from that store. A 14" iBook G4.

 

[aUsern@me]

I just knew Jobs was making a terrible and expensive mistake. The future was online retail. Malls and brick and mortar were dying.
Turns out, if you provide a great experience for great products, people want to visit you and spend money with you. Who knew? (other than Jobs)

 

[holysmokes]

Stood in line for store #1. Glendale Galleria.

 

[IAmStumped]

In honour of the first Apple Store check out the Apple Store Time Machine, where you can take a virtual walkthrough of the Tyson's Corner store (as well as a few others) and relive the glory days of Apple.

The Apple Store Time Machine

Travel back in time and revisit four iconic Apple Stores on grand opening day.

michaelsteeber.com

 

[mannyvel]

They've basically removed the third party showcase feature from the stores for the most part. IMO that was one of the better features of the store: exposure to smaller brands that catered to Apple customers.

It's not like there's a lot of competition for electronics retail anymore.

And the story of the 5th avenue store is legendary; it's an excellent example of how "thinking different" works.

 

[sw1tcher]

Apple's retail operation turns 25 years old today, marking a quarter century since the company opened its first stores on May 19, 2001.

Some 500 visitors lined up before dawn on opening day, with the queue growing to over 1,000 by the time the doors opened at 10 a.m. The two stores, located at Tysons Corner Center in McLean, Virginia and Glendale Galleria in California, welcomed over 7,700 visitors and recorded $599,000 in combined sales across their opening weekend.

Still have the store opening t-shirt they gave out.

 

[Geekett]

Opening Apple stores was a great idea ! However, service and advices has decreased a lot since a few years. Each time I went in Apple Store in Paris, Apple’s employee has weak knowledge of Apple products and history. I fear the day when one will ask who is Steve Jobs

Sometimes they give wrong information or advice to buy another brand, saying Apple is too expensive ! I see also employees being rude with customers (reverse is true).

Also the store is too busy, crowded, stuffy, full of wealthy « bling bling » people. Guess that’s the price of success, but the general decline of knowledge in Apple Store is worrying

 

[drunkaviator]

I remember the Regent's Street store back in the 2000s, with its glass staircase and free wi-fi, it became a bit of a hang out. It was a fun place to be. Maybe I'm getting old, but the stores these days feel a bit soulless to me; full of loud obnoxious events, annoying "urban" music, and staff that are less fun to engage with, and less knowledgeable as others have said - even a basic question about screen scaling on the 15" MacBook Air vs 16" Pro gets the answer "yes, the 16" displays more because the screen is bigger"; actually the effective resolution is almost the same. That and a flat dismissive, rude, and sassy attitude to price matching with John Lewis, which they always used to do when I asked. My last few visits have been...meh.

 

[Timpetus]

I have a couple of the early stores' opening day t-shirts still in their tubes. I miss when we'd see lines of people camped out for a new Mac or iPhone. I also miss when the "Genius" title meant something. In recent years, it's rare for me to meet with one who actually knows more than me about a single Apple-related subject... Should have applied to the job back then, maybe I would be working for Apple!

 

[tikipaul]

I remember watching this tour with Steve Jobs, I knew the Apple Store was going to be huge. It was and still is the best way to purchase an Apple product in person. I remember going to stores like CompUSA and employees would actively talk perspective Apple buyers into a PC instead.

Having only ever touched a Mac for the previous five years, I applied at CompUSA in 1998 and they said the already had one person who knew enough about Macs. I ended up at Sears (only for 2 weeks) and asked why the iMac was advertised as $1099 instead of $999 like everywhere else. They said, "Because we give a 10% if someone signs up for a Sear credit card." When Circuit City started selling the iMac, I applied and was told, "I don't care what you sell, your job is to sell the service plan."
Apple had to open their own stores just to have someone sincerely show their products. They didn't care if you bought it at the Apple Store. I had Apple Store workers tell me to go to elsewhere for a sale or better payment options. But nowadays, I avoid the Apple Store because the atmosphere is corrosive and the workers do not know the products. They only know a pitch they've been told to repeat.
I have an Apple Store less than 6o3 meters from my house and refuse to go in.

 

[switz]

Many of us silver haired customers probably have forgotten more than the younger generation will ever know about Apple history and products.

I think back many decades to the Sears Roebuck store in Bloomington, Indiana (gone now). They had a computer sales area that had a few Apple systems and PCs. The sales person was able to look at the price tag and tell me the price. I asked a specific question and the look was one of bewilderment that someone would ask a question. The person was absolutely clueless about Apple gear and tried unsuccessfully to steer me to a PC.

Ands that story was wide spread and one of the causes for the Apple stores to be created.

 

[tonywalker23]

Worked at Haywood Mall when it first opened in Greenville. If I remember correctly, I heard that 5,000 people applied, and there were 56 people hired. I remember feeling so special that I had the chance to work there while also during the time of Apple that I now remember nostalgically. Despite the low pay (I've heard and read things are somewhat diff now at retail), it was the most fun job I've ever had. I was only offered part-time (I suspect that it was because during the initial interview I asked to not be schedule on Sunday mornings but who knows), and I never moved beyond a Specialists (though I often helped people fix whatever was wrong if it was software related before the Genius ever got to them).
We ended up having our first set of twins and driving almost an hour to a part-time job for $9 an hour didn't make sense. But I loved that job, and whenever we are in Greenville I always stop in if I have time and say hey to the few originals who are still there.

 

[mrgraff]

I have a couple of the early stores' opening day t-shirts still in their tubes. I miss when we'd see lines of people camped out for a new Mac or iPhone. I also miss when the "Genius" title meant something. In recent years, it's rare for me to meet with one who actually knows more than me about a single Apple-related subject... Should have applied to the job back then, maybe I would be working for Apple!

One time I made the "mistake" of walking into an Apple Store while wearing a blue t-shirt. You would think I really did work there for a moment. I had to turn around and leave after helping a few people.