Only by getting people to "Shop different" will Apple get people to "Think different" . . . and ultimately, to Buy different, was the comment shared by David Lang a number of years ago and he was some what correct. Despite possible channel conflicts and other challenges, Apple's is becoming a retail powerhouse, unveiling another 50 stores this year in 8 countries around the world including the new Manhattan location on the left - watch the video on abc news here and from the WSJ below. Impressive to say the least.

According to an article at MacCentral, Apple concluded that "'destination' locations such as Best Buy and Office Depot won't work for the 95 percent of non-Mac computer users." In doing so they realized the need to create "experiences" via retail space that engages consumers to understand unique attributes of their products and brand to grow market share. In this case bricks and mortar distribution is a synergistic strategy that serves to educate consumers in a unique way. This strategy integrates physical retail into a largely digital distribution model. When considering how other concept retailers like the  "Discovery Store" or Sharper Image were unable to make this work, we'll see how sustainable Apple's strategy for retail will be in the long-term. Regardless, when visiting these new locations - they certainly are all about the customer.

Read the original blog entry...