Regent Street is world's busiest Apple Store, says Apple VP
updated 10:40 am EDT, Fri August 13, 2010
Johnson lays out retail approach
Apple's Regent Street outlet in London, England is the currently the busiest Apple Store in the world, according to the company's senior VP of retail, Ron Johnson. The feat is particularly significant due to the expense of the location, and the fact that it maintains regular hours, unlike the prominent Fifth Avenue store in New York City. Though perhaps no longer Apple's global flagship, Fifth Avenue is open 24 hours a day year-round, except when it has to prepare for product launches.
"Regent Street taught me the most," Johnson tells Retail Week. "It was a big bet to put in a big store like that, but it worked. Today, Regent Street is our highest traffic store in the world."
The executive notes that when Apple was devising retail plans roughly 10 years ago, the intent was to allow people to try Apple products first hand. One of the current goals is simply to make shops appealing. "Our primary objective is to create a place that people will love," says Johnson. With Regent Street, Apple has allegedly created not just a store, but "a place for people to be."
Johnson also insists that retail workers are taught to "to look in the heart, not the pocket book" when handling customers.
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The feat is particularly significant due to the expense of the location, and the fact that it maintains regular hours, unlike the prominent Fifth Avenue store in New York City.
How does the 'expense' of the location affect traffic? Before shoppers go to a store, do they go "Hmmm, I don't know if I want to go in there. It costs $300 sq ft for them to rent this building.
And isn't it 'cheesy' to proclaim a store that just opened is your 'busiest'? I mean, all new Apple stores have that initial customer surge.
Oh, it's also their biggest store, so while it isn't open 24/7, it can handle more foot traffic at any one time just due to it's larger size.