Dive Brief:
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Revenue growth has slowed, but the success of the Apple retail store is unmitigated and an example to watch closely.
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Customers come into Apple stores loyal to the brand and primed to buy, analysts say, despite the fact that it only discounts its products once a year, on Black Friday.
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The dollars per square foot bear that out: Apple sold $4,650 worth of stuff per square foot in fiscal 2013, according to analysis by Fox Business, outpacing Tiffany and other high-end retailers.
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Observers attribute a large part of Apple’s brick-and-mortar success with unprecedented good customer service.
Dive Insight:
It’s popular these days to toll the bell for the brick-and-mortar retail store. And it’s true that retailers, especially at malls, are seeing less traffic and keen interest in discounts from customers that do come in. But take a few lessons from Apple, which, as mentioned, only discounts its wares on Black Friday. Provide superb, highly knowledgeable customer service, have plenty of staff around, pay attention to customers from the moment they walk in, keep your store’s interior well-lit with attractive displays, keep windows inviting and even exciting, and sell high-quality products — including third-party peripherals — with a bit of a cult-like following. Yup — that’s all, and you’re good.