That’s nice but also the one negative point about Apple Stores. They are usually packed and many people want to buy something, too many to really handle without a line – yet there isn’t one place where a line could form, which tends to lead to confusion. People who are completely new to Apple Stores might moreover not immediately know where to pay what they want to buy.
When I visited the Apple Store in Munich for the first time I wanted to buy a €15 gift card but every Apple employee was busy and I couldn’t really find a place where I thought I would be able to pay. It seemed like too much of a hassle and that gift card wasn’t important enough for me. I wasn’t really trying very hard to buy something but I think this shows that packed Apple Stores aren’t a very friendly place for small impulse purchases.
By the way, in the Munich Apple Store they sort of do have a semi-permanent setup on the right at the back of the store. I think a lot more people in Germany still pay cash (I payed my iPad cash – don’t ask.) so their nifty cash registers (which are hidden under the tables) are needed more often (they are also not mobile) and there are more or less permanently Apple employees there. If a line forms they will tell you that you can pay everywhere but that doesn’t really help a whole lot when every single employee is busy.
I think what Apple is doing works extremely well for Stores that aren’t packed – but if they are it seems to break down a bit. And Apple Stores are usually packed.
I used to work at an Apple retail store and I empathize with your frustration.
With respect to the line idea, we trialed that and found it to be a disaster. You see as the apple store is so packed we quickly found the line going out the door. This clearly signaled to all who walk by that they should not come in.
We make the best we can of a great(profit)/bad(wait times) situation.
When I visited the Apple Store in Munich for the first time I wanted to buy a €15 gift card but every Apple employee was busy and I couldn’t really find a place where I thought I would be able to pay. It seemed like too much of a hassle and that gift card wasn’t important enough for me. I wasn’t really trying very hard to buy something but I think this shows that packed Apple Stores aren’t a very friendly place for small impulse purchases.
By the way, in the Munich Apple Store they sort of do have a semi-permanent setup on the right at the back of the store. I think a lot more people in Germany still pay cash (I payed my iPad cash – don’t ask.) so their nifty cash registers (which are hidden under the tables) are needed more often (they are also not mobile) and there are more or less permanently Apple employees there. If a line forms they will tell you that you can pay everywhere but that doesn’t really help a whole lot when every single employee is busy.
I think what Apple is doing works extremely well for Stores that aren’t packed – but if they are it seems to break down a bit. And Apple Stores are usually packed.