“In a new investment analysis from Needham & Co., Apple’s retail outlets are described as the ‘fourth leg of the stool.’ That echoes Chief Executive Steve Jobs’ comments that his company is built on three legs: the iPod, the iPhone and the Mac. But analyst Charlie Wolf believes that Apple Stores justify the fourth leg because they play an instrumental role in attracting Windows users to the Mac platform,” Katie Marsal reports for AppleInsider.
“‘We estimate that Windows visitors represented well over half of the 150 million visitors to the stores in fiscal 2008. Indeed, the growing volume of traffic has created its own challenges,’ the report states. ‘With the growth of the Mac community, Apple has had to allocate increasing resources to servicing this community through the Genius and iPod bars,'” Marsal reports. “He added: ‘These post-sale services are, of course, a major reason Windows users have switched despite the perceived premium at which Macs are priced. So it’s imperative that Apple maintain the level of service it provided when the Mac installed base was much smaller.'”
Marsal reports, “Wolf estimates that since 2004, Windows switchers have nearly doubled the size of the Mac install base. Of the 492,000 Macs sold in Apple Stores in the third quarter, more than half were bought by Windows users. That means that about 25 percent of Windows switchers bought their Mac at an Apple retail location.”
Wolf says that the recent “recession-induced decline in same-store sales should diminish going forward… [and] same-store sales growth could conceivably turn positive in December,” Marsal reports.
Read more in the full article here.
Will Apple have to give Microsoft a referral or finder fee for the customers that first went to Microsoft’s new store that will be located near Apple’s existing stores? This is going to be to easy. They start out looking for Microsoft and switch to Apple. “Once you go Mac you never go back”!
The simplicity and beauty of the Apple Store is another classic Apple approach. Redefine the concept and show us all how it should be done. Just an analogy of the Mac OS, really.
Watching what I imagine as newcomers in an Apple Store is awesome. It’s like watching kids in a candy store.
Of course, MS will copy and pray, as they always do, with their coming stores this year. But most of the hardware, other than the Zune and the Xbox won’t even be their own. But they will have cool big-ass tables to order your products from…
I still think in the end the Microshaft stores will end up looking like Cheap Radio Shack stores full of giant Cardboard displays with cheesy battery operated moving parts. The stuff they send to their reseller partners. A giant Windows 7 Box with waving arms, A big brown dancing Zune, Bigger then life size XBox Masterchief that talks when anyone gets within 3 feet and giant MS banners and posters hanging from the ceiling tiles. They’ll have their dumb ass desk or counter were the Windows dumb asses will stand around in a small group talking about the XBox or PC Game their playing and bragging about how many nubes they tea bagged. While their are people waiting at the help counter/desk for over an hour before any even talked with the person at the counter.
Heading back to the Mission Viejo Mall today to get some, ahem, construction shots of the Msft store.
The Apple store in the Shops at Mission Viejo has the best customer service of any Apple store I’ve been to in the country. It has an amazing staff that works really hard to help it’s customer. I would agree with the article about the Genius bar being used mostly by switchers, that and the One to One training, it’s swamped in there.
My cousin who used a Mac from 1995 to 2000 went to Dell and became a diehard anti Mac guy for years. Now he just bought an iMac. My sister who was on a mac in 2001 went to a Dell in 04 and this year got a aluminum macbook in 09.
They always say “New to Mac” customers I’m not sure this is true because many people I know were on a mac at some point during the 90 moved to a PC and now are back on the mac. Are these people really “new” to the mac? Or are they just back to the back.
Still remember my 1st visit to an Apple store in Vegas, 2006 July
Wow, purchased an iMac 20″ !
@macmac
You raise a good point. I’m one of those you see. I left Apple in 1994 and came back in 2004. It’s interesting, in that people who switch once and likely to switch again, based on perceived value of goods and services received. They show a thoughtful approach to purchasing goods and services, so I’m not at all surprised that these are the “first” switchers. But most importantly, they are the important switchers, because most are perceived as leaders, they are the important ones to get on the bandwagon first.
Forgot to add
I returned to Mexico, at the time we had a 30% import tax on desk tops, but none on lap tops or monitors. At customs I argued it wasn’t a desk top, but just a monitor that came with a key board. they let me go with no import tax
@Demon,
I disagree with your prediction. While Microsoft isn’t known for innovation, what they do well is copy – much better than Xerox. Microsoft stores are going to be almost exact copies of Apple’s stores except they’ll have some different sections – and will showcase different manufacturer’s wares. The Microsofties will love it and claim innovation. (Like original Shakespeare – which we all know was first written in Klingon.
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Because of the sheer number Microsofties and those who do not know software from hardware, the stores will be “successful”.
Peace.
And a lot of those recent “switchers” came into an Apple Store to check out those “too cool and stylish for me” Macs because Microsoft’s “Laptop Hunter” ads told them to do so, consider and then reject those Macs. The only problem is that once fairly considered, a good percentage of Windows users decide to Get a Mac. Apple thanks Microsoft once again.