There are only 2 stores in a 500 mile radius from where I live, even though it's a very large metropolitain area. I don't know what it is with coast companies and coastal mentalities, but hopefully this will change with apple's current trend to saturate places with more stores to deal with massive numbers crowding its minialist aesthetic.

Sorry, danviento, Apple doesn't do business in Jesusland. Incompatible cultural outlooks and all. What do you want an Apple store for, anyway? Shouldn't you car-driving flyover country types be saving your money for gasoline instead?

Why in the world is apple making their new store thinner? Is it some type of "pro-vegan" political statement? This is going to hurt apple in the long run, to say the least.

Well, from someone whos been to a lot of businesses, colleges, high-schools, and their fair share of coffee houses, I'd say the near-predominant mobile that I see ARE macs. Apple does a great deal of business in the area, and may soon land that deal with Boeing to clinch somer server sales. We have plenty of local stores sprinkled around, and the education setups at universities, but none of the brand stores to deal with support or proffessional seminars. That last point is my personal reason for wanting more stores, but it'd be great to see stores in many area malls as well.

That reminds me- I should go to apple's request page again and post for prosoftware seminars again.

Testy, I don't know where you got the "thinner" idea from, but let me tell you as an architect, you can do a LOT with apple's budget for stores even in a 20' or even 15' wide space. 10' might be pusing it, but it's still workable, esp. with multiple stories-worth of space.

Niche stores like this might even be very useful for dense areas as mentioned above. If Apple is hiring designers/architects for a job like that, sign me up.

Yeah. Brooklyn. Right near my old neighborhood... cool. Too bad I moved to Manhattan. ;^)

I just hope Apple doesn't OVERbuild stores. Yes, they're carefully targeting store sites, but still... how many successful retailers have gone on binges of store expansion only to have it drag them down later.

The solution to the build binge is to corner out their market in retailers that already exist i.e. Best Buy, local computer stores, campus bookstores, etc. Aside from a small sales/support staff, these places don't have the full 'Apple Store' experience, but it puts product out in front of more faces. I bet if Apple could, the 'rent' they pay to use that floorspace (as under their control) could cost a lot less in overhead and initial construction investment.

Even though we all know it's cheaper in the long run to own than to rent, it may not be the case here. Of course, when you stick apple's computers next to the other c*** out there, it puts the rest to shame, and other names like Dell and Compaq won't be happy with dwindling sales numbers in retail stores they have contracts with.

That last bit would be the deal breaker for the in-store model. Having your own store solves any contractual problems, and we all know Apple has mone to burn right now. I wonder how far they'll take it.

Can someone please tell me where all 4 Stores are? I only know of 3 to date..Soho, 5th Ave, and West 14th. If the author of this article is referring to the Upper West Side... I have a problem with that because It hasn't been built yet!!!!

i'm sure population density has more to do with it than coastal mentalities. brooklyn is one of the more creative areas in nyc now so it makes sense for there to be an apple store there. add in gentrification in brooklyn and you've got a good mix of potential customers to hit.

and to testudo, it is brooklyn so maybe it is a vegan thing. ha. anyway, apple does have other "thin" stores already in malls. they're kind of a hassle when it gets busy but for most people who are just buying accessories or ipods, it's really convenient.