New Retail Chief Ahrendts to Oversee Apple Store Restructuring, New Store Construction

[Jstuts5797]

I'll give my opinion as a consumer and as someone who worked many years for Target in management. First I'll be upfront I LOVE going to Apple stores...just for the simple fact that they are so RARE to come across and because they are different, in general, than every other retailer out there. HOWEVER, there are some key issues that have ALWAYS bugged me no matter what Apple store i've been to. #1 They are always WAY over crowded. The traffic flow in the stores is horrendous. You have people there who are just there to play with the products, and thats cool and should remain... HOWEVER those people get in the way of and block traffic for those that are there for a specific reason or to actually browse and buy. EVERY TIME I've been to an Apple store, the purchasing "experience" has been completely different. No one ever knows where to go to stand in line to buy something, or to stand in line or sign up for the genus bar, ect. Such a mix mash of activity everywhere with no method or rhyme or reason to the madness. Basically its utter chaos. Apple has created this problem themselves a couple of ways. First the REALLY need to consider way more stores. Now I get WHY they want and need to keep the count down. I get that... more sales in less space and less overhead equals better profit margins. So I'm not saying put one on ever corner like its Starbucks, but I live in a city with near pop of 200,000 people. The NEAREST Apple store is 3 hours away. If their radius is within a three hour drive thats a TON of people all being serviced by that one unfortunate Apple store. Break that Apple store into two. One in original location and one in say a smaller city but not insignificant ... also within that 3 hour radius. Then you have half as many people crammed into each one instantly making the experience that much better at both those stores. Another reason they have so many people getting into these stores IS because the wide array of services a store provides training, retail, demos, support, repair, ect. By making every store also a center for support and repair puts even more stress on the stores. Now I"m not suggesting they break each part away and create individual locations for each service, however if they were to invest in more stores where there are massive holes,and then to organize the stores better.. Easy identifiable areas for demos, shopping/excessoires, Genius Bar, repair, ect. Everyone would know where to go in every store to do whatever it is they need to do and you wouldn't have billions of people all mixed in and milling about trying to get done whatever it is they were trying to get done while being in the way of everyone else also trying to do the same thing. Apple stores are efficient in that its a one stop shop with a small footprint for all your Apple needs. HOWEVER, its the most inefficient retail establishment when it comes to traffic flow and organization. Ok Now I realize that really does not address what this chick is saying she wants to do, however I think it would be better improvements. Hope this all made sense. Just some thoughts to throw out there.

 

[unplugme71]

The point I made was to managing stores differently depending on demographic.

My example was regarding the different experience in shopping in a Macys in Flint Township, MI (where there is a mix of high and low incomes) vs. shopping at Macys in Troy, MI, an hour down the road (where income is consistently high).

Rather than keep Macys consistent, but perhaps larger or smaller depending on sales volumes seen, Macys varies the quality level, but keeps the store sizes the same. The end result is that you don't know if Macys is a mid-to-low store or a mid-to-high store.

The practical reality is that when I do shopping, I'll make the trip down to Troy... ...and go to the Nordstroms store there. I _know_ what I'll find at Nordstroms. When I need to buy a simple pair of jeans, I'll go to Target, anywhere. I _know_ what I'll find at Target. Is my point understandable, now?

But what if Macy's in Flint doesn't sell Hugo Boss Jeans but Troy store does, why would Macy's continue selling Hug Boss Jeans at Flint?

That's the point that Apple and a lot of retail stores are making. I can see what you are saying though. Even Best Buy is not consistent across the board. Some Best Buy stores may carry different items, although less of a variation than Macys. However Best Buy doesn't carry as much variety as a clothing store would.

 

[Alameda]

NOT. GOOD.



I've been through this in Michigan, with Macys. Live in a predominantly wealthy area? You get presented with one kind of Macys. Live in an area with a range of incomes? You get presented with an entirely different kind of Macys, unkempt and not stocking the products one would expect out of "Macys".



The overall effect is to greatly dilute the value of the brand, since the company presents a different level of customer experience depending on location, all under that same brand name. And as a customer, it REALLY grates you to be presented a shabbier store in your locale, all by intent.



Like I said: NOT. GOOD.

I have to agree. This sounds like a terrible strategy. It doesn't "personalize the experience," because "personal" means the individual, not the aggregate preferences of his or her zip code.

If I buy a $1,800 MacBook Pro, shouldn't I get the same level of service whether I live in Montana or New York?

 

[SHNXX]

I have to agree. This sounds like a terrible strategy. It doesn't "personalize the experience," because "personal" means the individual, not the aggregate preferences of his or her zip code.

If I buy a $1,800 MacBook Pro, shouldn't I get the same level of service whether I live in Montana or New York?

I don't think apple will differentiate stores as much as Macy's does.

Clothing has much larger variation in price than consumer electronics.
You might see slightly more upscale products at a Beverly Hills apple store but it's not going to be as different as a clothing store.

 

[dazed]

How about kicking out all the idiots who are basically using the stores as Internet cafés. Without those people the store will contain only those who may actually buy something and there will be room to actually walk about.

 

[Alameda]

I don't think apple will differentiate stores as much as Macy's does.

Clothing has much larger variation in price than consumer electronics.
You might see slightly more upscale products at a Beverly Hills apple store but it's not going to be as different as a clothing store.

At the same time, the whole point of an Apple Store is to sell and support Apple products. If I buy a Mac Pro, I should get the same quality of support whether I buy it in NYC or Duluth.