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Lego Apple Store is a stroke of blocky genius
Behold! Rumor has it that Tim Cook wants to revamp Apple's retail stores and the above is a sneak peek at what we have in store. What you're really looking at, though, is a pretty spot on replica of an Apple retail store put together by Jon Lazar and constructed completely with Legos. The occasion? The release party for the book Arduino and Lego Projects, where Laughing Squid's Scott Beale dropped by. I can only wonder how much money per square foot even this Apple Store replica rakes in every day. You can check out more photos of Lego creativity over here. Lastly, if you just can't get enough of the 1-2 punch that is the Apple Store + Lego combination, recall that we previously posted on a similarly cool Lego construction back in March 2012. Photo courtesy Laughing Squid
Apple's search for a new retail head inches forward
For about eight months now, the position of Senior VP of Retail at Apple has remained vacant. Back in October 2012, Apple unceremoniously dismissed John Browett from the position after just seven months on the job. Reports at the time indicated that Browett never quite meshed with the culture at Apple and his efforts to focus more on the bottom line than on customer satisfaction were never well received. Discussing his time at Apple this past March, Browett remarked: Apple is a truly fantastic business. The people are great; they've got great products; it's got a great culture and I loved working there; it's a fantastic business. The issue there was that I just didn't fit within the way they run the business. It was one of those things where you're rejected for fit rather than competency. So while Apple retail stores continue to rake in more money per square foot than any other store on the planet, the company is still actively looking for someone to take Apple retail to even greater heights. According to a recent report in the Wall Street Journal, Apple's search for a new Senior VP of Retail is moving along ever so slowly. Apple's search for a replacement, handled by recruiters Egon Zehnder International, has gone slowly, people familiar with the matter said, and the company has yet to settle on a finalist after interviewing several external candidates. Among those interviewed but rejected as a poor fit were wireless and telecommunications-industry executives, one such person said. A CEO of a privately held retailer in France spurned Apple's overtures, believing it would be hard to change Apple's culture as an outsider, another person said. Interestingly enough, the report relays that Apple isn't considering internal candidates for the position. This of course aligns with reports we previously saw back when Apple was searching for its first replacement for Ron Johnson, namely that Apple is on the lookout for candidates with significant international retail experience.
Daily Update for July 30, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Apple solicits ideas from retail workers on selling iPhones
A little less than two weeks ago we reported that Tim Cook spearheaded a three-hour-long meeting geared towards increasing the percentage of iPhone sales that occur at Apple retail stores. As it stands now, the vast majority of iPhones are purchased online, from carrier stores and from brick-and-mortar retailers like Best Buy. Now 9to5Mac is reporting that Apple has taken to asking its international retail employees for advice on ways to increase iPhone sales at Apple retail store locations. In a message sent out to retail employees last week, Apple explicitly asks for great iPhone ideas from retail employees below the manager level. The overview portion of the email reads: Do you have a great idea about iPhone? Do you ever wonder why Market Support hasn't implemented something to better support you in selling or suggesting the iPhone? Do you have a thought about something that is missing in the store environment that would help bring iPhone to life? We are looking for multiple candidates with the most innovative and relevant ideas to participate on this cross-functional team. Retail employees with winning iPhone-related ideas will have the opportunity to join Apple's iPhone team in Cupertino for an eight-week stint starting in August. While there, they will work with Apple employees from a number of different departments, including Marketing, Mobile Commerce, Merchandising and Customer Analytics. Interestingly enough, the email notes that winning iPhone ideas do not necessarily need to be feasible. Rather, the competition, so to speak, is looking for "innovation and pie in the sky."
Apple tweaks product shelving in stores
ifoAppleStore is reporting that at least one Apple retail store has taken to redesigning its product shelving. According to insiders, the Corte Madera (N. Calif.) store was renovated over several nights earlier this month, replacing its original shelving with a new model that has no vertical dividers. The change was apparently done for aesthetic reasons, and because the new design no longer needs the dividers for structural support. Here's the type of product shelving one typically sees at an Apple retail store. The new shelving has a more seamless and continuous aesthetic, as pictured below. ifoAppleStore typically has its finger on the pulse of all things Apple retail, and it notes that these changes are part "...of an eventual chain-wide refresh of certain store interiors." To that end, keep an eye out for this subtle design change at an Apple retail store near you. It's quite a stretch, but you might even say that the new product design change lends itself towards an overall flatter look, a la iOS 7.
Apple to relocate, expand last 'mini' Apple Store
Apple is set to relocate the last of its "mini" retail stores to a new location, while dramatically expanding its size, according to ifoAppleStore. The mini-store in question is the Oakridge Apple Store in San Jose, Calif. The store will move from its current location to a new spot just across from the food court in the mall. The revamped store will be 15 times larger than its current size. Once the move is complete, it will mark the end of the mini-stores, the first of which were opened in 2004. As ifoAppleStore notes: The project signals the end of the mini-stores, which were intended to allow Apple to occupy smaller spaces, and yet generate almost the same amount of revenue. However, as the number of products has grown over the past eight years, and training and service have become more integral to the stores, the mini-stores couldn't provide enough space for visitors. ifoAppleStore says the expanded store could open in early 2014.
Apple announces it has 6 million registered developers
Apple kicked off WWDC with its typical heap of numbers about the developer community, Apple retail and more. At WWDC, participants traveled from more than 66 countries to attend, with 64 percent attending for the first time. The developer program has over 6 million registered developers, with 1.5 million added in the past year. As we all remember, tickets for the conference sold out in just 71 seconds. As a result, Apple decided to make a lot of the WWDC content available online. Tim Cook then hopped into Apple retail stores and announced that 1 million people make their way into Apple Stores each day. Apple now has 407 stores are in 14 countries worldwide, with one of their newest flagship stores opening recently in Berlin. Berlin's Kurfürstendamm store is a showpiece -- it is housed in a 100 year old building that was one of the first theaters in Berlin.
Apple retail store coming to Basel, Switzerland
According to listings posted on Apple's job site, the people of Switzerland will soon have their fourth Apple retail store. The available job openings are currently for a manager, inventory specialist, and an Apple Creative, Genius, and Customer Adviser. The listings were first spotted by Swiss Apple site MacPrime. The site had previously speculated that Apple was building a store at Freie Strasse 47 in the city center. The old building that had lived at that location was recently demolished and construction had begun on a new, Apple-esque structure. Today's job posting seems to confirm that the site was correct. The Basel store will be the forth in the country, after stores in Zurich, Geneva, and Wallisellen. Basel is the third-largest city in Switzerland with a population of around 166,000. It is one of the country's cultural centers with numerous museums and theaters, including the Museum of Fine Arts, which offers the world's oldest art collection that is accessible to the public, according to Wikipedia.
Apple's first store in South Australia to open on Saturday
Apple has announced that its next Apple store will open at Rundle Place Centre in Adelaide, South Australia this Saturday. It will be the first Apple Store in South Australia. This will bring the number of Apple's retail stores in Australia up to 20. Rundle Place Centre is a four-story shopping center with over 70 retail outlets. The store is set to open at 10 AM local time this Saturday. However, interested customers can already set up Genius Bar appointments on the store's web page.
'Spaceship Campus' architecture firm to revamp Apple retail stores
Marketing Magazine is reporting today that architecture firm Foster + Partners, which is working on the design of Apple's new Cupertino campus, has been hired to create new designs for Apple Stores. Apple's previous architect of choice was 8 Inc, which has been responsible for such iconic Apple Stores as the 5th Avenue flagship store in New York City and the Regent Street store in London. It's unknown if Foster + Partners plans to make any drastic changes to the highly successful and recently trademarked design cues for Apple Stores, which include all-glass storefronts and rectangular wooden tables. Foster + Partners was hired by late Apple CEO Steve Jobs to design the new Cupertino "spaceship" campus building, which is now reportedly $2 billion over budget and somewhat behind schedule.
Evidence points to new Netherlands Apple Store
It looks like Haarlem, The Netherlands will soon have the luxury of a new Apple Store along Grote Houtstraat, a prime retail location in a popular pedestrian walkway in the city. ifoAppleStore reports that construction has begun on the ground floor of what appears to be the beginnings of an Apple Store. The space is said to comprise of approximately 8,000 square feet. Of that, 6,800 square feet will be public retail space, while the rest will be back-of-house. The Netherlands currently has an Apple Store in Amsterdam (as pictured). Another is under construction in The Hague, although it's believed Haarlem's store could be completed first. Check out ifoAppleStore's webpage for further details, photos of the construction site and a store plan.
Putting Apple's retail traffic into perspective
Two days ago, during an interview with Bill Shope at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook mentioned some 120 million people walked through the doors of Apple's 394 (approximately) stores open in 2012. To put the magnitude of those 120 million visitors into perspective, The Mac Observer has put together an interesting article (with charts and all) stacking that number against some of the biggest attractions in the world. For example, Disney's 13 theme parks drew 125 million attendees in 2011; that's a scant 5 million higher than the number who visited an Apple Store in 2012. Also note that the 2012 Super Bowl drew about 111.3 million viewers. Credit the NFL as deserved, though: that was for just one evening, not the entire year! Perhaps the most striking statistic is that, compared to the entire world population in 2012, estimated at 7.07 billion people, Apple's 120 million store visitors equates to 1.69 percent of the world population -- a noticeable and discernible percentage in the total. It's staggering to think that Apple draws such significant foot traffic. For more comparisons -- and charts -- do check out The Mac Observer's post here.
Retail VP Jerry McDougal leaves Cupertino
For those playing the home version of Apple's Corporate Shuffle, you may recall that John Browett was shown the door last October, leaving Apple without a hand at the retail rudder during the holiday season. We have noted they are still looking, and one of the names bandied about was Jerry McDougal, the vice president of retail. Well, as of today it's being reported that McDougal is off the list as well. According to ifoAppleStore, he has departed Cupertino as well, in order to (say it with me) spend more time with his family. It is entirely possible this is the case, given the additional commitments likely required in the absence of a head of Apple retail. However, this has become a phrase that means any number of other things when someone departs an organization. See also: "creative differences." Also reported by ifoAppleStore, some of his responsibilities were retail marketing and merchandising, as well as store operations and loss prevention. So internal candidates are thinning, and there's still been no announcement or indication someone has been hired. Hopefully we will get an official statement from Apple about this during next week's earnings call.
Use the F-word to quickly reach a real person at AppleCare
Today TNW spotlights a helpful tip (originally posted on Reddit) that can help you get through to a real person faster when calling the AppleCare helpline: drop the F-word. Like many of us, the Reddit user grew frustrated navigating through the numeric automated telelphone system menu and (perhaps like many of us) began cursing in frustration into the phone. Then something interesting happened: "[The automated voice] cut itself off in mid-sentence, apologized, and in about 10 more seconds I was talking to an Apple tech." The ability of an automated telelphone system recognizing the F-word isn't a genius invention by Apple, though. It's software built into the third-party Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system used by AppleCare. As TNW points out, IVRs "are often programmed to listen out for certain keywords that might indicate they are about to lose a customer. By monitoring calls and immediately connecting a frustrated caller, the company may be able to reduce the number of complaints [it] receives and retain the caller's custom." But for those of you reading this who now think you have a hotline to a real AppleCare representative the second you call, you might want to think again. Despite the ability of the IVR to recognize profanity, shouting "F*CK!!!" every time you call AppleCare may not get you the results you hope to get for a few reasons. First, you look like a jerk with anger issues. Second, another Reddit user suggests that doing so won't always take you to someone who can answer your questions. Instead it just might transfer you to an AppleCare "call director" who will apologize for making you wait and then transfer you back to the queue -- something that might have you screaming "F*CK!" all over again. [Image by Sebastian Fritzon]
Apple executive shakeup: Scott Forstall and John Browett are leaving the company
Huge news out of Apple today, as its senior vice president of iOS software, Scott Forstall, will leave the company next year after putting in some 15 years. Furthermore, John Browett -- head of Apple retail -- is also on his way out. The memo was delivered late today, on a day that is littered with other news that the company may hope will bury the bulk of it -- and, on a day where trading on the New York Stock Exchange is halted due to Hurricane Sandy. It's practically a given that Forstall is taking the brunt of the impact from its decision to forge ahead with an obviously subpar Maps application, all while trumpeting it as one of the pillars of iOS 6 during his keynote speech at WWDC 2012. The introduction of Siri as a beta product is also on Forstall, and we all know what happens to executives who flub something related to iPhone.... As the shakeup unfolds, Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi will add more responsibilities to their roles. In other words, Tim Cook isn't about to usher in new help who may thwart the company's efforts to continue at its breakneck pace. Curiously, Mansfield will be heaping more on his own plate just months after he had originally planned to retire. As for Ive? He'll be responsible for providing "leadership and direction for Human Interface (HI) across the company in addition to his role as the leader of Industrial Design." Eddy Cue will be gifted burdened with Siri and Maps, while also keeping an eye on the iTunes Store, the App Store, the iBookstore and iCloud. Needless to say, he probably won't be seeing too many walls outside of Cupertino for the foreseeable future. Federighi is being tasked to lead both iOS and OS X, while Mansfield chairs a new Technologies group that bundles Apple's wireless teams across the company. (Of note, Dan Riccio -- who was scheduled to take over for Mansfield prior to his retirement retraction -- isn't among those who are gaining duties.) Just months after Browett was brought in from Dixons in order to lead up Apple's retail efforts, he's on the outs as well. Of course, he's also responsible for the branch having to tell stores that it "messed up" when he fiddled with staffing levels back in August. A search for a new head of Retail is underway and in the interim, the Retail team will report directly to CEO Tim Cook. Update: The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Forstall was asked to resign after refusing to sign his own name to Apple's Maps apology, leaving Tim Cook to sign his name instead. Yikes. %Gallery-169590%
East Coast Apple Stores batten down for Hurricane Sandy
Just like most everyone else on the East Coast of the United States, Apple Stores in five states, D.C. and Canada are making preparations for "Frankenstorm" Hurricane Sandy. ifoAppleStore.com reports that between 35 and 50 stores may close in the northeastern US and Canada (if they haven't already), as they are either within the expected landfall zone of Sandy or just outside it. One of our readers has confirmed that Rhode Island and Boston area stores are shut. Meanwhile, two of Apple's flagship New York City stores have surrounded themselves with sandbags, with the Fifth Avenue store even wrapping Macs and other products in plastic bags as an extra precaution against water damage. All of this goes to show that if Apple isn't taking chances with this megastorm, neither should you. If you live in the area expected to be affected by Hurricane Sandy, please take every precaution possible. Forewarned is forearmed.
Thieves smash car into Leawood, Kansas Apple Store
If you can't strong-arm your way past Apple's security, smash your car into the store instead. That's what someone or a group of people did at the Apple Store in Leawood, Kan., early this morning. Fox 4 from Kansas City reports that police are looking for a suspect or multiple suspects that rammed a stolen Dodge into the front window of the Apple Store, grabbed merchandise and ran off. Police have not released a list of what was stolen as of yet. It's not the first time this has happened to the Kansas City-area location. In 2010, the same thing happened at the same store, a commenter notes in this story of a similar smash and grab in Portland, but that time iPhones were stolen. Since then, the store has installed security gates.
Apple to open first Swedish retail store
A visit to a mall in Sweden by Swedish site IDG.se has confirmed (by the familiar black covering and the Apple logo) that there is indeed a new store opening up near Stockholm. The Täby Spectrum shopping center will host that country's first Apple Store, starting on September 15. Apple's been laying the groundwork in Sweden for a while now, filing a business registration certificate last November, and hiring for the store earlier this year. But the company is now getting closer than ever to actually selling items in the store. And there are more stores on the way: Apple is also planning to open stores in the Harbour Street district of Stockholm, as well as in a brand new mall location near the southwestern city of Malmö. We've heard a lot in the past about how quickly Apple trying to expand in China, but that's not the only foreign land Apple is aiming to open up for business. [via MacRumors]
Apple retail chiefs refute layoffs, address employees
Apple's new retail chief, John Browett, told leadership teams in Apple Stores that the mothership (not his words) "messed up" (his words). In a rare gaffe, Browett's team apparently tried what Dow Jones Newswires says were new staffing formulas. This led to shifts being cut and general pandemonium among some retail employees (and a lot of bloggers), but no layoffs as some reported. The pandemonium wasn't really that palpable, but Apple is reversing course and going back to its former staffing plans. The company also assured employees it is hiring. With a new iPhone and possibly new iPad on the near horizon, coupled with the holidays not that far off, Apple is going to need all hands on deck. Some excellent color commentary by Jim Dalrymple here.
Apple reportedly price matching iPhone discounts from carriers and other retailers
According to a leaked screengrab hosted up at MacRumors, Apple retail shops now have the authority to price match carrier and rival retail discounts on iPhone. Specifically, the note informs employees that prices from Best Buy, "carriers," Radio Shack and Target can be matched, with $49.01 seeming to be the savings across the board. Curiously, places like Wirefly, Amazon, Negri Electronics and even Walmart aren't mentioned, so we wouldn't recommend trying to work the price down based on ads seen from any of those. The note also mentions the iPhone 4 and 4S exclusively, and we're fairly sure this sort of goodwill won't ever been applied to iPad, Mac hardware or pretty much any other Apple kit. Of course, crazier things have happened. We've reached out to Apple for comment, and will update this article should it choose to reply.
