Selfridges Apple Watch Pop Up Shop Shuts Down

[tentales]

Yes, it was a stupid thought. Maybe more hope than anything else. If you are dropping 1g on a watch that does basically the same thing as your phone not including accessories, it would be nice it lasts more than 1 year. Funny how the first generation Apple didn't even last 1 year before Apple replaced it with the S1 (that had a faster processor).

But yes, you are right. Upgradability is out, Dongles are the new thing

Never mind 1G. how about 3G for the new 15" MBP, base model here in Canada.
Played with it at Staples just tonight. True the display & speakers *are* nice. The gimmick bar (+$500), the thinness and utter lack of port variety and upgradability, are making me smh. As for the watch, I was a skeptic from the start and my 1st thought was, after growing the screen size on the iPhone line, why on earth would people now use a small "remote control" screen for your iPhone (that's right there in your pocket) and stick it on your wrist ?
The 1.5secs it takes to take your iPhone out of your pocket or purse, is really too much time ?

"Pros" want to tinker, upgrade & interface, Apple watch wearers certainly wouldn't do that and would never be Apple's target market, but yet, it's so geeky a device and too thick. Leave the MBP thicker and with more battery and the Watch thinner. Never mind, I'd never wear one anyways.

 

[dan110]

The gold Watch was a marketing exercise to generate buzz and to break down notions of tech not being fashion.

It was less about convincing the wealthy and more about convincing the Everyman that the entry level Watch was, except for the case material and band, the same as the sport Watch.

I'm surprised how many folks didn't understand this.

We understood perfectly well what and who they were trying to convince in order to make it a "Needful Thing".

The point is that all the people that truly made Apple a great company don't care about that. We care about what Apple has always been about under Jobs - a company that creates insanely well designed technology tools that work so well, it's almost "magical". Notice Steve never came out with a gold plated iPod? Yet, it was the must have gadget for close to a decade or more. Then, he did it again with the Mac line, MacBooks, iPad, and of course, the iPhone.

It is truly heartbreaking to see what Tim has done to the company in such a short period of time. And I'm not using "heartbreaking" in the loosest of terms. I'm dead serious. To watch the company that I fell in love with for decades die a slow death, is truly sad, maddening, emotional.

 

[nofear1az]

Honestly, I feel Apple should do what they did first with iTunes, iPod, and Safari is make the Apple Watch available to Android users and I feel it would pick up so more steam. But, I know they won't because they feel it keeps people tied to their platform but ok - enjoy limited sales then.

 

[iGeek2014]

Just before Christmas my sister was asking where in London she could get a Series 2 Apple Watch for her boss' son (shopping on his behalf).

Remembered Selfridges had the pop up shop inside and they were the only ones who had stock of the model she needed.

So I must admit I'm surprised it's been closed down, I'll be honest-whatever the reason(s) for the decision Apple need to sort themselves out.

I know the Macrumors forum is only a small section of people's opinions BUT I'm seeing far more negative remarks than I am positive.

 

[beanbaguk]

Funny thing is the solid gold Apple Watches have been selling at auction for upwards of $30K.

Such is the power of discontinuing something high end

More proof that people are idiots. Buying (an ugly IMHO), worthless piece of tech for $30k is pretty vile.
[doublepost=1483510409][/doublepost]

Actually I think they were right in market Ng it as jewellery first, utility second. The other way around makes it too geeky and not likely to replace your regular watch full time. I guess the transition was always part of the plan.

I think the "transition" was a desperate way to generate more sales. The Apple Watch was never a piece of jewellery, unless you want to place it in the "fashion jewellery" segment. Aka, an item of jewellery that is fashionable for a very limited time.

 

[orangehand]

As an Apple specialist IT person, I know of nobody with an Apple Watch. It seems that they have utterly failed to capture imaginations. (and I prefer the somewhat random timekeeping of my Rolex!)

 

[MH01]

Apple planned to target the AppleWatch towards the watch market but instead, it took hold in the fitness market. The Watch Edition is now $1,700 instead of $20,000 and the Sport is the standard version, selling far more than the intended standard Watch in stainless steel.

As expected, they're recalibrating for that. Their message changed, geared to fitness and so will their retail locations, moving from the luxury market into sports centric, like Nike Stores.

What makes you think that it took hold in fitness? It's actually not got a hold on fitness , it's too expensive . I'm very much into fitness and visit multiple gyms weekly, all the personal trainers and people training there , Apple Watch is the most rare. Much better fitness offering for a lot less

Where it's taken hold is apple fans who wanted an accessory for the iPhone.

GF is running a marathon and wanted a fitness tracker , so being an apple fan I jumped online thinking I'll get her a Nike Apple Watch, costing a bit more, at £369 I kinda had a laugh and got her a bear brand new Microsoft band for £40.....it's price is ridiculous in the sports tracker segment .

The Apple Watch is kinda lost what it's main purpose is, other than an acccessory in the apple ecosystem

Apple is trying to give it a purpose....just cause hey have a partnership with Nike does not make it a fitness accessory, it's just business .

 

[fitshaced]

More proof that people are idiots. Buying (an ugly IMHO), worthless piece of tech for $30k is pretty vile.
[doublepost=1483510409][/doublepost]

I think the "transition" was a desperate way to generate more sales. The Apple Watch was never a piece of jewellery, unless you want to place it in the "fashion jewellery" segment. Aka, an item of jewellery that is fashionable for a very limited time.

So... jewellery then. What else is jewellery for if not fashion? I think you mean 'fad' jewellery. It probably is but that's the point. Make it a watch first and computer second. People mostly buy watches for fashion. once they see the usefulness in a smart watch, they will want even more function on their wrist.

 

[MacsRgr8]

She was hired on with an up-front bonus of more than $70MM. No other Apple executive received that kind of treatment, so why did Cook agree to it in her case?

One word: PANIC.
It was because of John Browett...

Same type of error as the acquisition of Beats.

 

[Tech198]

Yep.. poor sales.... unless Apple has *other* ideas up their sleeve to fill an 18k Gold watch. They may need to roll up more than one sleeve for this one.

 

[Tunster]

Doubtful it's poor sales. More likely it's due to Apple now focusing the Watch as a "Fitness" gadget as opposed to a "Fashion" gadget which is something they should have done in the first place

Pretty much my thoughts since the launch. Fashion market is feeble/unpredictable. Clearly someone tugged Tim's ear and said that the position of watch needs to go to a sporty one. You only have to look at the recent Watch ads.

I think they tried to mimic the success of the iPod. That was fashionable/stylish. But hey, only because they made a very good product that was in demand at the time and had a huge online music store to go with it. If Apple can afford it, Watch needs time whilst others drop out of the market.

 

[Cloudkicker]

A pop up Apple Watch store was destined for failure to begin with. It's a big investment, pop up stores make more sense for Auntie Anne's and macaroons.

Or, sadly, a fluffy Kardashian makeup squad. Like Girl Scout cookies tables in malls, only less useful, more expensive & all proceeds go to Mother Pimp, Kris.

 

[MH01]

So... jewellery then. What else is jewellery for if not fashion? I think you mean 'fad' jewellery. It probably is but that's the point. Make it a watch first and computer second. People mostly buy watches for fashion. once they see the usefulness in a smart watch, they will want even more function on their wrist.

Do you have any other jewellery that is useful/functional ? While I've bought many watches on the looks alone, the functions .....are unused. People don't care about if it's a chrono, divers watch etc, hey buy it for bling and brand recognition as a status symbol in my opinion.

I bought my Apple Watch for function, it's an awful piece of jewellery, I still get asked many times, why I own own, and what's the point . If I wear my Rolex or IWC I get compliments, people see them as classy, and I will never go deep sea diving or fly an F-14

 

[fitshaced]

Do you have any other jewellery that is useful/functional ? While I've bought many watches on the looks alone, the functions .....are unused. People don't care about if it's a chrono, divers watch etc, hey buy it for bling and brand recognition as a status symbol in my opinion.

I bought my Apple Watch for function, it's an awful piece of jewellery, I still get asked many times, why I own own, and what's the point . If I wear my Rolex or IWC I get compliments, people see them as classy, and I will never go deep sea diving or fly an F-14

I think you missed my point. They were marketed as jewellery first and they pass that test by many buyers who really like the look of it. Personally I would never wear a Rolex as I have yet to see one I like. That doesn't mean I don't see it as jewellery. Do only watches with gps that sets your time based on location (not the ones marketed for sports) not classify as jewellery?

 

[Steve121178]

Pack more features into an exclusive, high end watch that won't be dated in a few years... and they'd sell.

It has nothing to do with features. It's too expensive for the vast majority of potential customers.

 

[MH01]

I think you missed my point. They were marketed as jewellery first and they pass that test by many buyers who really like the look of it. Personally I would never wear a Rolex as I have yet to see one I like. That doesn't mean I don't see it as jewellery. Do only watches with gps that sets your time based on location (not the ones marketed for sports) not classify as jewellery?

You are right it's a personal preference. Some will see it as jewellery , I just don't , in my view it's more like a calculator watch though I like mine and use it for certain purposes, it just not my daily driver .

As for time accuracy, I really don't care, my mechanical watch is always off, though my iPhone or computer tells me the exact time all the time. With an smartphone being in most people's possession nearly all day, the need for a time piece is dead, hence many mechanical watches are just jewellery these days

 

[ssong]

I don't necessarily think that the Selfridge's pop-up store is evidence of Apple's marketing of the watch as jewellery... Perhaps more of an attempt to place itself as a premium brand rather but not necessarily marketing it as jewellery. Over the course of its lifetime the watch saw itself be marketed as a useful companion, fitness coach, general accessory.

I agree that despite being marketed for fitness, if a person was serious about fitness then they would probably use something from garmin or polar, only AWS2 manages to barely compete with them in terms of practical functionality. I still own a S0 AW and I personally enjoy it for what it is, a basic companion to my phone. Processor speed isn't too much of an issue since I don't really use it for anything beyond checking my calendar, getting notifications, replying to texts, and siri.

I do think that consumer demands often want the AW to replicate the iPhone experience (i.e. independent apps, complete app experience, etc.) but I'd say Apple needs to grow a pair and heavily push it as a companion device (and lower the price :3 )

as for the store closing, I doubt they had enough in-store sales to justify keeping it there.

 

[diipii]

Part of a worrying trend at Apple: hype high priced goods then walk away from them and the people that sell them. This is the way Cook operates.
[doublepost=1483526145][/doublepost]

The biggest problem with Apple today is that they have a fundamental misunderstanding of their customers.

Absolutely spot on.

 

[beanbaguk]

So... jewellery then. What else is jewellery for if not fashion? I think you mean 'fad' jewellery. It probably is but that's the point. Make it a watch first and computer second. People mostly buy watches for fashion. once they see the usefulness in a smart watch, they will want even more function on their wrist.

A properly designed wristwatch is timeless. I have no qualm spending $1000's on a watch at all. In fact, I own several ranging from $500 to close to $10k. But the difference with a quality timepiece is I will be able to sell my watches at close to the same price that I purchased them in 20 years time. In fact the watch I'm wearing today has gone UP in value since I purchased it. With only 2,000 made, I'll make a nice profit if I ever chose to sell it (which I definitely will not ). I'll also be able to continue wearing them in 20 years time and they'll look as good on my wrist as they did when I first bought them.

The point I'm trying to make is the Apple Watch is not jewellery. It's a gadget and a brilliantly hyped up fad. Apple's marketing machine did very well stirring up public excitement, but there's only so much you can hype up something that has little if any purpose for the average Joe.

A classic timepiece will always serve a purpose:

1) It tells you the time
2) It looks amazing on your wrist.
3) A decent watch will always hold value.

Either way, this is my opinion and I'm positive many will disagree with me but I'll happily place a good bet on the Apple Watch fizzling out in a few years unless somebody can come up with a killer app and the battery can be made to last at very least one realistic week.

 

[jamface]

Doubtful it's poor sales. More likely it's due to Apple now focusing the Watch as a "Fitness" gadget as opposed to a "Fashion" gadget which is something they should have done in the first place

'Sales' are really the only reason Apple does anything, regardless of how apparent the connection would seem to be. In any case, sales were poor at this location, tailing off to virtually zero after the first few weeks, and then staying that way.

 

[fitshaced]

A properly designed wristwatch is timeless. I have no qualm spending $1000's on a watch at all. In fact, I own several ranging from $500 to close to $10k. But the difference with a quality timepiece is I will be able to sell my watches at close to the same price that I purchased them in 20 years time. In fact the watch I'm wearing today has gone UP in value since I purchased it. With only 2,000 made, I'll make a nice profit if I ever chose to sell it (which I definitely will not ). I'll also be able to continue wearing them in 20 years time and they'll look as good on my wrist as they did when I first bought them.

The point I'm trying to make is the Apple Watch is not jewellery. It's a gadget and a brilliantly hyped up fad. Apple's marketing machine did very well stirring up public excitement, but there's only so much you can hype up something that has little if any purpose for the average Joe.

A classic timepiece will always serve a purpose:

1) It tells you the time
2) It looks amazing on your wrist.
3) A decent watch will always hold value.

Either way, this is my opinion and I'm positive many will disagree with me but I'll happily place a good bet on the Apple Watch fizzling out in a few years unless somebody can come up with a killer app and the battery can be made to last at very least one realistic week.

For all your expensive watches, you don't know what jewellery is. Increasing resale value doesn't define jewellery. There's plenty of cheap chains, rings, necklaces and even watches that will not ever increase in value and have no purpose other than to be worn. They are all jewellery. Is a plastic fork not cutlery because it's not made from expensive metals?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

I have the leopard print underwear.

But do you have the matching leopard print watch band?

Accessorize man. Accessorize. Buy every watch band design to match every outfit.

 

[Grayburn]

It was always empty. Never a good idea to put a shop next to a sushi bar.

It was busy the couple of times I went but that was in between 1-2 pm on both occasions.

 

[thekeyring]

Sounds like a part of their refocus on health and fitness. I feel like the fashion element was second to that, at best. After all, people wear awful looking Fitbits without anyone really worrying because they value the function so much.
[doublepost=1483535933][/doublepost]

One thing is for sure: Apple is willing to keep tweaking their Apple Watch game plan at a fast pace until they hit the sweet spot.

Since the first watch was released, they have significantly modified the strap offerings, the tone of the advertising, the way the OS works, the naming of the collections, the price points, the watch case colors, and the price/material of the Edition line. They have deemphasized some features and emphasized others.

Whether we agree with all their choices or not, the competitors are going to have a hard time catching up.

I know this will get a lot of down-votes but I wonder if the iPad was only succesful from day 1 because the concepts it debuted were developed for (and proven with) the iPhone. So in many ways, it wasn't totally new.

The iPod needed growing time, and grew massively in 2006 (5 years after launch): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod#/media/File:Ipod_sales_per_quarter.svg

The iPhone overtook iPod in 2010, and seemed to grow massively around 2012 (5 years after launch): https://brandtao.files.wordpress.com/2014/10/global-apple-iphone-sales-q3-2007-to-q3-2014.png

We'll know relatively soon how well the Watch will do, but I imagine eventually they will add a feature that hits the press and gets enough people talking that it'll become mainstream. Just it's not mainstream straight away like iPad.
[doublepost=1483536622][/doublepost]

A properly designed wristwatch is timeless. I have no qualm spending $1000's on a watch at all. In fact, I own several ranging from $500 to close to $10k. But the difference with a quality timepiece is I will be able to sell my watches at close to the same price that I purchased them in 20 years time. In fact the watch I'm wearing today has gone UP in value since I purchased it. With only 2,000 made, I'll make a nice profit if I ever chose to sell it (which I definitely will not ). I'll also be able to continue wearing them in 20 years time and they'll look as good on my wrist as they did when I first bought them.

The point I'm trying to make is the Apple Watch is not jewellery. It's a gadget and a brilliantly hyped up fad. Apple's marketing machine did very well stirring up public excitement, but there's only so much you can hype up something that has little if any purpose for the average Joe.

A classic timepiece will always serve a purpose:

1) It tells you the time
2) It looks amazing on your wrist.
3) A decent watch will always hold value.

Either way, this is my opinion and I'm positive many will disagree with me but I'll happily place a good bet on the Apple Watch fizzling out in a few years unless somebody can come up with a killer app and the battery can be made to last at very least one realistic week.

That's because with a wristwatch you're not solely paying for function. If all you needed was the time on your wrist you could buy a very cheap watch and get that function, right?

A beautiful swiss timepiece bought today does the same thing as one bought 50 years ago, and does the same as one bought in 50 years time. That's why it holds it's value - because there's nothing coming to make it look irrelevant. Not so with the Apple Watch.
[doublepost=1483537252][/doublepost]

The biggest problem with Apple today is that they have a fundamental misunderstanding of their customers.

I think the biggest problem to forum users is that they don't understand Apple customers as well as Apple does.

 

[Eggtastic]

Funny thing is the solid gold Apple Watches have been selling at auction for upwards of $30K.

Such is the power of discontinuing something high end

Really? Just by guessing I figured they would go down in price being older tech, but they are gold..