Beijing Fourth Store Apple Store is about to open

Although Apple once did not pay enough attention to the Chinese market, the domestic market is bound to become Apple's strategic place. According to a person familiar with the matter, Apple’s fourth direct-operated store in Beijing is located in the China Central Shopping Mall and is currently undergoing renovations. According to the progress of the renovation, as well as the model of "send new products with new stores," the store is expected to debut during the year. Earlier, Apple CEO Cooke said that the current number of 11 direct-operated stores in the Chinese market is too small and it plans to double within two years.

A Beijing Business Daily reporter visited yesterday and saw that a two-storey shop on the west side of the China Central Plaza has been surrounded by barriers. According to the visual inspection of the decoration workers, the shop covers an area of ​​about 500 square meters. The original owner of the area, Versace, settled in Shin Kong last year. At present, all aspects of Apple's new store building has not been formed.

Although the China World Shopping Center did not disclose more information about the merchants to the Beijing Commercial Daily reporter, according to an informed source close to Apple, the store opened in Wangfujing’s largest flagship store in Asia as early as last year. Preparations have already begun. It is also understood that a senior manager of the Apple Wangfujing store has already gone to Chengdu to conduct manager training. According to the usual practice, this is also preparing for opening a new store.

In addition to the upcoming China World Shopping Center store, Apple currently has three direct sales stores in Beijing, located in Taikooli Sanlitun, Joy City Xidan and Beijing apm. The Beijing Business Daily reporter noted that after opening the Sanlitun Taikooli Store in 2008, Xidan Joy City Store debuted. It was also two years later that Apple officially entered Wangfujing. Unlike the opening of a store in the past two years, the opening period of Apple’s fourth direct store has been greatly shortened. In addition to Beijing, Apple also made arrangements throughout the country, including three in Shanghai, one in Shenzhen, one in Chengdu, and three in Hong Kong.

Chinese consumers’ immense enthusiasm for Apple’s products and the decline of Apple’s performance in the recent past have allowed Apple to reposition the Chinese market, which was once not sufficiently valued. According to the second quarter of 2013 report released by Apple on April 24, Apple’s revenue in the Chinese market was US$8.8 billion, an increase of 11% over the same period last year. According to Cook, "This is Apple's best quarter in China's history." Comparing with the support of the Chinese market, Apple announced that its gross profit margin in the second quarter of 2013 continued to decline by only 37.5%, which was lower than market expectations. Some analysts pointed out that the reason may be Apple's move to $ 414 million to meet the additional spending needs of Apple's Chinese market after the change in warranty policy.

The industry believes that Apple has paid close attention to the Chinese market with its intention to invest in R&D centers in the Chinese market, to move App Store servers to China, and to increase the speed of opening stores to direct stores.