14 DAY TRIAL // Sources within Apple retail have spilled the beans on the company’s plans to open an “enormous” iPhone upgrade event at its retail stores across the United States with the purpose of boosting sales and perhaps to clean the market of aging hardware as well.
A source with knowledge of the initiative tells 9to5mac that “Apple is planning to hold an ‘enormous’ iPhone-related event in its stores this week in order to boost sales.”
The effort will begin May 8, the source said, when “Apple will be contacting upgrade-eligible iPhone users with older iPhone models via email to come into their local Apple Store to update to a new iPhone 5s or iPhone 5c.”
The Cupertino company has upped its buyback prices in recent weeks, and customers barging in on May 8 are expected to benefit from similar discounts. Apple expects a hoard of customers, with levels of traffic comparable to those of new product debuts. Several other new marketing and sales initiatives are being prepared as well.
The newly-hired SVP of Retail and Online Stores, Angela Ahrends, will be overseeing the initiative with the assistance of other executives, the sources said.
The primary reason cited for the initiative is to boost iPhone sales, which is a no-brainer. However, the effort will serve a double purpose that will enable Apple to further unify its ecosystem of iDevices, allowing more people to take advantage of the latest advancements in hardware and software alike.
By offering customers an attractive upgrade offer, the Cupertino giant will rid the streets of numerous aging iPhones that may not even be on iOS 7. Furthermore, the hardware it offers in exchange (iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c) will be capable of running the upcoming iOS 8.
iPhone sales are in no danger of collapsing, but considering that it’s still Apple’s strongest business pillar, there’s no chance the company will ease off.
The initiative may well be related to the upcoming iPhone 6 announcements, which could be made at the Worldwide Developers Conference next month.
The iPhone 6 will have a considerably bigger form factor and much more screen real estate, with some redesigned / relocated buttons and an overall thinner enclosure.
Rumor has it that Apple has been talking to wireless operators to increase the subsidy to $299 / €299 for the upcoming iPhone model, which is very bad news for the customer if it turns out to be true.