“The amazing Apple Watch was once available to own starting April 24, 2015. Now the watch is only shipping to customers who have pre-ordered the device on April 10th,” Mark Reschke writes for T-GAAP. “Yesterday Apple removed their 04.24.2015 date stamp on the Apple Watch’s home page, replacing it with “The Watch is coming.” According to The Telegraph, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Retail and Online sales, Angela Ahrendt, sent out a letter to Apple retail employees explaining the watch will not be available until June.”
As we announced last week, due to high global interest combined with our initial supply, we are only taking orders online right now. I’ll have more updates as we get closer to in-store availability, but we expect this to continue through the month of May. It has not been an easy decision, and I want to share with you the thinking behind it. — Angela Ahrendts, Senior Vice President, Retail and Online Stores
“Using corporate speak, Ahrendts is in CYA (Cover Your “Backside”) mode,” Reschke writes. “She feigns sorrow at the suffering of Apple retail store employee distress and then asks them to trust her further… Nobody likes walking into a store, seeing what they want, only to be told that product is not available for a few months, if not even longer. But this is exactly what Ahrendt’s odd pre-order, then fuzzy April 24 launch date has caused. This is a nightmare scenario for Apple. If this the new Apple launch process, why not order the MacBook from Amazon, MacMall or wait for the Apple Watch to show up at another location? Apple loses margins on each sale not going directly through their retail or online locations, and this launch has encouraged customers to wait, purchase elsewhere, or worse yet, buy something else.”
“Might Ahrendts not be an ideal fit for Apple? She comes from the world of high-end fashion, where she successfully managed Burburry. But haute couture and Apple are two different creatures,” Reschke writes. “If Apple wants to move towards personal, but fewer sales, that’s fine, but this isn’t the world Apple’s created under Steve Jobs or Tim Cook’s leadership. Perhaps Ahrendts wanted to make a name for herself, thus she’s trying a bold new launch approach at Apple, but perhaps she just doesn’t understand the scope and expectations of Apple’s customer base?”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: First of all, apply Betteridge’s Law of Headlines immediately. We understand the frustration of wanting an Apple product when there is none to be found, but blaming the wrong person isn’t the best way to alleviate the frustration. Ahrendts isn’t going anywhere (especially not with $73.4 million and counting invested in her). If, God forbid, Tim Cook got hit with a bus tomorrow, we’d nominate Ahrendts to take over.
Secondly, Ahrendts is not to blame for product shortages. Technically, if you want to rant, rant about Jeff Williams, Apple’s COO, we guess, and throw in Tim Cook for good measure since he taught Williams, and/or whatever part of the supply chain is failing, but we wouldn’t rant about any of them at the moment. Things can change rapidly in the supply chain.
We believe that the concept of starting pre-orders on a certain date, with delivery a couple of weeks afterwards is sound. It eliminates the problems with scalpers being bussed in to stand in front of Apple Retail Stores, for one major benefit. Obviously, with Apple Watch, there is a problem ramping up production. The product simply isn’t there. You don’t blame the shopkeep, you blame the supply chain. Shit happens, you know?
If any company can rapidly get their ducks in order, it’s Apple. We wouldn’t blame Ahrendts for trying to make the best out of a bad situation.
Related articles:
Ahrendts memo: Apple Watches will not be available to buy in-store throughout May – April 16, 2015
Analyst: Low Apple Watch supply due to haptic motor and OLED display issues – April 15, 2015
Apple Watch deliveries could arrive sooner than expected – April 14, 2015
Apple Watch preorder data estimate: 1.24 million Apple Watches were preordered in the U.S. on Friday alone – April 13, 2015
Apple Watch first weekend preorders destroy Android Wear’s annual sales – April 13, 2015
Average U.S. Apple Watch pre-order was $707 – April 13, 2015
Apple Watch first-day pre-orders estimated near 1 million – April 13, 2015
Apple likely to quickly ramp up Apple Watch production – April 13, 2015
Apple Watch pre-order shipping estimates stretch into summer – April 11, 2015
Apple Watch sold out in minutes; didn’t preorder in time, how’s June sound? – April 10, 2015
Here are the dates you can expect to get your Apple Watch – April 10, 2015
Apple Watch on fire as Apple sells out fast – April 10, 2015
Apple Watch draws strong turnout at Apple Retail Stores – April 10, 2015
Apple Watch already sold out – April 10, 2015
Open thread: Did you get your Apple Watch preorder placed? – April 10, 2015