Apple was dying by the end of the 90s, but then it opened its first ever
Apple Store 25 years ago - and the rest is history

Date:
Tue, 19 May 2026 09:00:00 +0000

Description:
Apple opened its first Apple Stores 25 years ago and changed the world in the process...

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter These days, there are about 550 Apple Stores around the world, with locations popping up in countless major cities and across five of the planets continents. They are, in other words, a serious success story for Apple .

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the opening of the worlds first two Apple Stores. Found in McLean, Virginia, and in Glendale, California, they were opened on this day way back in 2001. Far from those humble beginnings, Apple Stores today are the gateway into the companys ecosystem and are a thriving segment of Apples business that bring in billions of dollars in annual sales. Here's the story of how that happened. Latest Videos From You may like From Ping to 'MobileMess': 11 things Apple got horribly wrong in the last 50 years 'Youre holding it wrong': 11 iconic phrases that define Apple's last 50 years Ranked: The 15 best Apple gadgets of the past 50 years as voted for by you Apple goes its own way (Image credit: Apple) By the late 1990s, Apple had spent many years trying to get by on the store within a store model. It didnt work.

Apple would be assigned a corner within a big-box retail store. Sure, it
would have its own little display area, but its products would be presented and sold by the employees working for the host store, not Apple.

This frustrated Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who prickled at the way his companys products were being offered to customers by staff who were not passionate about them and who didnt even understand them particularly well.

Speaking to biographer Walter Isaacson, Jobs put it this way: All that the salesman cared about was a $50 spiff. These salespeople werent well-trained
in what made Apples computers distinctive. Customers might just see the
higher Apple price tag without learning about its innovative features, Jobs worried. Unless we could find ways to get our message to customers at the store, we were screwed, Jobs declared. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

After growing frustrated with this situation, Jobs decided that Apple should go its own way. After all, Jobs was famously obsessed with control. Running its own stores would allow Apple to ensure everything was to its liking instead of relying on a half-hearted effort from one of its retail partners.

In 1999, Apple began secretly interviewing outside executives for a role developing a chain of Apple-branded stores. In the end, they settled on Ron Johnson, Targets vice president for merchandising. He was a good pick:
someone who shared Jobs passion for design and interest in shaping the user experience. (Image credit: Apple) In planning the new range of Apple Stores, Jobs and Johnson made a number of key decisions. For one thing, there should only be one entrance to the store, allowing Apple to control what the user
saw and experienced. Further, instead of placing its stores in remote, out-of-town locations, Apple should be present on Main Street, no matter how pricey the rent was. High footfall was important, as it would allow people to drop by on a whim something particularly helpful for converting Windows users. What to read next Apple turns 50 were live tracking the celebration, surprises, and more Ive used Macs in every decade since the 1980s and they still feel magical I saw Steve Jobs give his last WWDC presentation here's why it still matters

The stores also had to be the right size. Too large and visitors wouldnt understand where to find what they needed as soon as they entered. But downsize them too much, and they would signal that Apple had limited, small-scale ambitions.

Even the Genius Bar was a unique stroke of, well, genius. Perhaps most importantly, Apples limited range of products was a strong advantage. It
would allow Apple Stores to be airy and minimalist, with plenty of space for people to try out the companys products. This was vital for enticing loyal fans and total newbies alike. In other words, the goal was to be the complete antithesis of every other computer-buying experience. This was a competitive edge for Apple.

Even the Genius Bar was a unique stroke of, well, genius. Johnson had asked his staff to name the best customer service experience theyd ever had, with almost all of them mentioning a stay at a fancy hotel. So Johnson sent his first store managers on the Ritz-Carlton training program, then translated what theyd learned into what would become the Genius Bar. Apple, Jobs, and Johnson decided Apple Stores would offer service like no one else in the retail industry.

Put together, everything about the Apple Store had to impute or convey the values of the company. As Johnson put it, the store will become the most powerful physical expression of the brand. Apple wasnt just dreaming up a store it was planning a new way to dominate tech retail. Predictions of failure (Image credit: Apple) At the time, there were myriad predictions that the Apple Store would fall flat. Maybe its time Steve Jobs stopped thinking quite so differently, said Bloomberg Businessweek under the headline Sorry Steve, heres why Apple Stores wont work. Retail consultant David Goldstein, meanwhile, predicted the concepts imminent failure: I give them two years before theyre turning out the lights on a very painful and expensive mistake, he forecast.

Even Apples former chief financial officer, Joseph Graziano, was skeptical, saying Apples problem is it still believes the way to grow is serving caviar in a world that seems pretty content with cheese and crackers.

And there were moments when it could have gone wrong. One morning during development, Johnson woke up with a sudden thought: instead of arranging the stores around Apples product lines, as the company had planned to, they
should instead be centered on the things people could do with the products, like import movies or edit photos. This would fit in much better with Apples emerging idea of the Mac as a digital hub, but it would also mean delaying
the opening of the first store by three to four months.

I give them two years before theyre turning out the lights on a very painful and expensive mistake David Goldstein At first, Jobs exploded in a rage at
the disruptive idea. But after calming down, he realized that Johnson was right.

As he said to Isaacson, If something isnt right, you cant just ignore it and say youll fix it later. Thats what other companies do. Apple pressed ahead with the change and the stores were better off for it. that never came to pass (Image credit: Apple) Right from the get-go, the first Apple Stores were a success. Computer retailer Gateway had its own stores, and theyd been getting a paltry 250 visitors a week on average. Apple Stores, in contrast, averaged 5,400 visitors a week by 2004. The Manhattan store, opened in 2006, averaged 50,000 visitors a week in its first year. Jobs idea of opening in high-footfall locations was paying off.

Apple Stores took in $1.2 billion in revenue in 2004, setting a retail industry record for time taken to hit that billion-dollar landmark. Around a decade after the first Apple Store opened, their total revenue was $9.8 billion, with each store taking in $34 million a year.

Today, Apple is thought to make around $4,000 to $5,000 per square foot at
its stores. Compare that to the US average, which is around $400 per square foot, and its obvious that Apples decision to launch its own retail outlets has been an unmitigated success.

But more than just raw sales, Apple Stores have helped create a buzz around new Apple products. People camp out overnight to be the first ones inside a new store or the first to buy a freshly released device. Their minimalist designs and prominent city center placements made them a retail fixture for people around the world, whether they were loyal Apple users or had never heard of the brand before.

Despite the odds, the Apple Store has been wildly successful for Apple and
has led other tech firms to follow its lead. Samsung has its own line of shops, as do Microsoft and Google . But none of those imitator stores would exist if Apples first retail outlets had not opened a quarter of a century
ago and changed the way you shop in the process. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. The best laptops for all budgets Our top picks, based on real-world testing and comparisons

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