Apple opens its largest store in New York

The first customers of the Apple store in Grand Central Terminal were treated like "rock stars" at the opening of the new and largest department store chain in New York.The first customers of the Apple store in Grand Central Terminal were treated like "rock stars" at the opening of the new and largest department store chain in New York. Some waited 24 hours in the street to be the first to enter.The first customers were treated to a guard of honor and a red carpet worthy of the Cannes Film Festival. More than 300 employees in red T-shirt greeted customers with shouts and applause, as if they had won a lottery.
Apple does not yet launched new product on Friday morning. This was only the opening of its fifth store in New York. The space is 23,000 square feet (about 2100 square meters) and the blue dome of the station overlooks the store, completely open area.
By moving to Grand Central Terminal, a station dating back 140 years and a historical monument, Apple wanted to transform the simple act of buying an iPad a great experience.
It takes quite an event to delay the thousands of New Yorkers passing through a station not in a hurry every morning. Hundreds of people were frozen in place staring at the balcony of the concourse to open at 10 am.
Jacob Davis, 19, of Albany, spent the night standing in a corridor of the station to be the first to enter with his father. "I'm here to experience and receive a free T-shirt," he said before being escorted, like a star by a team of cameras.
The new store will steal the show undoubtedly that of the 5th Avenue, the famous Cube, one of the most photographed monuments by tourists. Apple has also respected the architecture of the building: there is very little glass, the material signatures of all their stores.
As most clients are usually in a hurry, there are two "Genius Bar" and express counter without waiting to get a product previously purchased by Internet. You can also buy in "scanning" the bar code with her iPhone. The store also offers short courses in 15 minutes.
Apple has an agreement with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to occupy the space. The company had to pay $ 5 million to remove the previous tenant. The annual rent is $ 1.1 million and construction has cost $ 2.5 million.
Unlike most other businesses in Grand Central, Apple will not have to share a portion of its revenues, causing a controversy in New York.
A planned demonstration to denounce the use of minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo in many electronic products has not disrupted the opening of the store under surveillance. So far, the petition was signed by 10,000 people.
The Grand Central store is open until 21 pm on weekdays, 19 pm Saturday and 18 am Sunday.
Over 300 million people visited Apple stores in the last year throughout the world. The chain has 361 branches.