“They came for new iPads. Others for a date with a Genius. Some were wide-eyed first-timers, many were well-known regulars,” Michael B. Farrell reports for The Boston Globe.
“Hundreds of people coursed through the Apple Store on Boylston Street on March 17 – one day after the computer-maker released its latest tablet – in a buzz of consumer euphoria that has helped the company create one of the world’s most profitable retail empires, which hit $14 billion in sales last year,” Farrell reports. “The Globe was given a rare inside look into how the Apple Store works, and how some of its 36,000 employees spread across 363 stores worldwide are helping to change shopping much as the iPod altered how people listen to music. The company’s stores have become more than just places to get gadgets. They’re destinations to meet like-minded techies, or pick the brains of Apple experts.”
Farrell reports, “They’re part library, part community center, part coffee shop (without the coffee), and occasionally a concert hall for Mac-loving musicians. The Boylston Street store even hosted a fashion show recently. And experts say this blend of commercialism and community is influencing everything from the Disney Store to AT&T retail outlets.”
Read more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Rick Paula” for the heads up.]