14 DAY TRIAL // The bulk of Apple's stores are located in the US, but indications are that the company's expansion plans for the next year lean heavily towards the international market. With Apple's market and mindshare growing so well at home, it is not surprising that they are now starting to strengthen their position abroad.
At the opening of the new flagship retail store on 14th Street in Manhattan, Apple's senior vice president of retail operations, Ron Johnson, talked about the company's future expansion plans. Around 40 stores will be opened in fiscal 2008, and of these, many will be outside the US. This is not exactly surprising, considering that the stores have been a key factor in Apple's success, and the company's rapid expansion into new markets with their iPhone device.
Besides growing their position in countries where Apple already has a presence, the company will also be taking its first steps in countries where it has, so far, been absent. Three new locations are planned for the UK, one at the huge Westfield London mall, one in the Covent Garden district of London, and another in a location that has not yet been identified. The company also has two stores planed for Sao Paulo, Brazil, at the Shopping Iguatemi mall and the Shopping Marketplace mall. The first of these is expected to open this month, while the second sometime next year.
Last but not least, Apple is said to be in negotiations with Reichmann International for space in the Torre Mayor office complex in Mexico City. It is suspected that Apple will open a store in the tallest building in the city, offering a brick and mortar counterpart to the online store that was only recently launched.
While Apple's retail business is in ever constant expansion, nowadays it is simply not enough to keep up with the demand that is constantly growing for the company's products, so it would not be surprising to see other retail partnerships on top of these official stores.