The Apple Store Shopping Experience
Over the past few weeks I’ve had to make multiple trips to my local Apple store to pick up this, that, and the other. I’m the typical guy in that I when I go shopping I don’t actually “shop.” I go in, get what I need, and get out as fast as possible.
At most stores this is easy to do…except for Apple stores.
I’ve yet to actually need any help from an employee in the Apple stores. I know exactly what I want and I just want to purchase it and get back to my office to use it. But it would seem Apple doesn’t care to actually have a set checkout spot. No place to to get in line and buy stuff. Nothing. You just have to aimlessly wander around the store and hope to A) get approached by a free employee or B) randomly pick an employee that’s helping someone and follow them around until they’re done.
I honestly don’t understand how this entire setup is a good idea. Sure I get that they want you to interact with the employees so they can hopefully sell you more stuff…but what about the people like me who just need to go in and buy something? I spent almost 15 minutes the other day in fairly uncrowded Apple store just waiting for an employee to free up so I guy by an adapter.
Yes, I’m ranting a bit here. But I really am curious what benefit Apple sees in setting up the store like this. Are all Apple stores like this? Or did I just luck out with the one closest to me?
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#1 Tammy says:My “local” Apple store (two hours away…hey, I live rurally) is pretty much like the one you describe, except there’s almost always an associate somewhere near the cash register counter at the front of the store. I don’t think I’ve ever had to wait more than a couple of minutes for help, even last week when I went in to buy an iPhone and the place as mobbed.
#2 Thame says:My Apple store (I lucked out, there’s one about 15 minutes away) is a bit more traditional. We have the roamers, but there’s always at least a pair of associates manning the front register.
Yours has no register?
#3 Kev says:I’ve been to all 4 of the Apple Stores in the Twin Cities and the Chicago Michigan Ave Apple Store. All have had a set checkout location. A couple computers setup with scanners and at least one person behind waiting for customers. In all these places it’s pretty easy to see to go in, pick up what I’ve needed and checkout and go very quickly if needed. The Chicago Apple store has the largest checkout counter, with about 6 or 8 computers and usually several people behind the counter ready to check you out. They even usually have small items like the iPod Minis or Shuffles behind the counter and you just ask for one if you want it. At holidays and big product launches, usually they even set up smaller checkout locations elsewhere in the store to handle the larger crowds. So I don’t think your experience is the overall setup for most of their stores.
#4 Nathaniel says:I’ve been to a half-dozen different Apple stores around the country and they all had a counter with someone hanging out there for the purpose of checking people out and grabbing accessories, etc for people who needed something quickly. Is it possible you’re just visiting the store when it’s busy and they don’t have enough employees? You say it was “fairly uncrowded”, but if it takes 15 minutes for an employee to get free obviously there are enough customers there to saturate the sales staff.
#5 bill says:last week i went to the apple store at the stanford shopping center in palo alto. walked to the ipod accessories, picked up a package of earbud covers, found an employee who checked me out on the spot. took my email address so he could email my receipt. when we were done, he said, “that was fast!”
and it was. of course, we completed the process next to the iphone display, so i had the opportunity to play with one. for thirty seconds. enough to know i want to get one when my current cell contract runs out.
anyway, the current setup works for me, at least when the stores aren’t packed.
#6 Joel says:My Apple store absolutely has NO register. It used to, but they shut down the store for a week earlier this year and moved the Genius Bar to where the cash registers used to be. Now all employees walk around the store with hand-held checkout stations. I, too, have many issues walking in and just picking up what I want. Does anyone else know why Apple is moving to this setup? Or are Josh and my stores the abnormals? And if so, why?
#7 Neven says:Most Apple stores I’ve been to, you can always grab an employee and check out right there and then in under a minute.
It takes less time to buy a MacBook at my Apple Store than to buy a pound of cheese from the deli at my local grocery store.
#8 Nathaniel says:Is it possible Apple is running an experiment in social phobia? I just find it amazing that it’s easy to approach someone at a counter, but if you take away the counter all of a sudden people start to panic and not know how to say “Excuse me, I want to buy this”. Is there some sort of approach anxiety taking place?
#9 Michael says:There are two types of Apple store out there. The first is a full “Apple Store” that has a checkout area, a genius bar, and often an Apple experience bar. (I forget what Apple actually calls the experience bar, but this is where you can go and get advice on how to use Pages, Keynote, Photoshop and so on to achieve your goals.)
The second type of store is the “Apple Store” express. This type of store is much smaller than a full store, usually consisting only of benches down the side walls and stocks a very limited range of software and accessories. In the express stores, there is usually (but not always) a small counter at the rear for checkouts but the checkout computers are hidden behind the counter. Also, the express stores often have check out shelves that pop out of the walls when needed.
The express stores rely heavily on Apple’s hand-held checkout devices. These devices are also carried by many of the associates at full sized stores. The hand-held checkout device is about the size of a Palm Pilot and allow you to complete purchases that do not involve applying any discounts (edu or corporate) to the sale.
For example, the Palo Alto Apple Store is a full sized store, whereas the Stanford Shopping Center Apple Store (also in Palo Alto) is an express store.
(Note, these comments are based solely on my shopping experiences at various Apple stores.)
#10 richard winters says:I’ve had the same experience. There is no register. There may be 4 or 5 apple employees helping various people scattered throughout the store.
There is a moment of awkwardly holding the credit card visibly and trying to make eye contact with someone.
There is a moment of trying to figure out which employee will be done helping another customer.
There is a moment of picking the wrong employee who has an individual asking them multiple questions as they walk through the store. Damn…picked the wrong employee…but should I go wait next to another employee.
Walk up to the genius bar and they are helping someone intently.
I just want to buy this Dora the Explorer game.
#11 Twist says:At my Apple Store the registers are in the back and there is always at least one person managing them plus a number of roamers for CC or DC only purchases.
#12 Rod says:This is EXACTLY what I experienced last week at the Apple store at Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego. The mall is busy even on a weekday afternoon, so the Apple store was a zoo. There are no registers, only roamers and a Genius Bar. I knew exactly what I wanted, didn’t need to shop, and still spent 10 minutes trying to find a free employee who could help me. It was rather irritating.
#13 Lon Seidman says:I wonder if maybe they’re having some staffing issues at your local store. My local store here in Connecticut has been very good about having a ton of staff on the floor at all times (much more than in year’s past). There is a checkout counter up front however they have roaming checkout people with handhelds (windows based ironically) to speed things up when the line gets too long.
#14 Josh Pigford says:To answer a few people’s questions…there is no set “register” at the store I go to. There _is_ is a register per se in that they can check you out there if you want to pay cash, but there is absolutely no place to just walk up to a counter and check out. You have to go hunt down someone or wait to be approached or you simply can’t buy anything.
#15 Jordan Tuwiner says:At my apple store they have three registers. And you just go up and pay. But it is usually crowded so you have to wait in line for a while.
#16 Jorge Quinteros says:I know exactly what you mean. I try to avoid straying away too for from the original purpose of my visit because I generally end up purchasing great stuff that I don’t really need.
#17 Theo says:Ha! I just went to my local apple store today and was thinking exactly the same thing.
The wandering cashiers with their handheld credit card machines are AWKWARD. They didn’t even give me a receipt, instead emailing it to my gmail account. So I felt like a shoplifter walking out of the store without any physical proof that I bought the item in my hand. Very weird. And inefficient.
#18 Paul Robinson says:Interesting. I remember when the first apple stores appeared they were cited for using the Gap model of having the cash at the back of the store, forcing you to walk by all the goodies before you could make an exit.
I haven’t seen the wandering cash machines at my local store yet. Sounds funky
#19 Not a Square says:At my Apple Store you can check out at the register just like a conventional store but you can also just have an employee use the card machine in their back pocket. It seems pretty convenient to me.
#20 Chas. Sanderson says:I’m sorry that you’re uncomfortable with the lack of structure.
I’m a 67 year old Mac fan boy and I thoroughly enjoy shopping at the local Apple Store and being checked out by a sales associate with a portable device. The service is always prompt and very, very helpful.
#21 Ramón says:I go to the main store in San Francisco and there are two checkout areas, one on each floor, plus I don’t know if it’s happened to anyone else lately, but with every purchase, I’ve received a followup email in addition to my electronic receipt, asking me to give them some input about my recent shopping experience. I think that that is in response to some complaints about some associates who were “too hip for the room”. I’ve also gone to their smaller San Francisco store, where they answer the phone; “Apple Stonestown - we have parking!”, and the service there is equally good. Their Emeryville store, before they opened the San Francisco stores was the pits - I filed a complaint about that one in 2003 and never returned. My experience in the Palo Alto store has been excellent.
#22 Josh Pigford says:@Chas: No need to apologize.
It’s not being uncomfortable with the lack of structure, it’s being uncomfortable with the bad implementation of the method. I shouldn’t have to hunt down an employee and certainly shouldn’t have to try and figure out who an employee is just so I can by something. That’s all.
#23 Andrew says:Like Joel, my nearest Apple Store did some remodeling and now there’s only one register at the end of the Genius Bar. The associates all have the portable card scanners. Another Store (there’s only 3 in my state) had an actual register counter….which curiously is right in the front of the store with the rest of the store behind it. That setup seems weird to me.
I personally don’t see how you had trouble figuring out who worked there, unless it was “Everyone wear the same shade of green shirt day” in your city/county/state.
#24 Mustang says:Every Apple Store has at least one “traditional” checkout machine, because the handheld checkouts (I think they’re called “EZ Pay”) cannot accept cash or checks.
One store near me has the original configuration: 3 iMac checkout at the front, Genius Bar in the back and lots of roamers with EZ Pay units; the other has the new configuration: 2 iMac checkouts in the rear, Genius bar on the side with lots of roamers.
#25 David says:@ Mustang. I have given cash to a ‘mobile’ employee, but like Josh, I find this whole set up rather annoying. When I’m at Steve’s House (the Apple Store) I know what I want and just want to get it and go.
#26 fitzage says:Your post prompted me to finally post on the subject. I’ve been meaning to for awhile.
I see many advantages to the new approach, but the fact that there is no obvious checkout line (they have a cash register in the front, but it’s only used when somebody wants to pay with cash or check) has been a source of much annoyance.
Some Apple stores have plenty of staff, while others barely have enough. The store in Tucson appears to be one that barely has enough, as there is never anyone available when I want to buy something.
http://fitzage.com/index.php/site/comments/im_not_the_only_one/
#27 Stephanie Guertin says:While the two Apple stores I frequent (Boston CambridgeSide and Knoxville) have checkouts, there’s never anyone at them. They’ve lost my business several times in the past because I couldn’t go in and buy something without waiting for an employee to wander my way.
#28 DeVon McDougal says:No every apple store is that way, i once went into the Sacramento store to buy a itunes gift card for a friends kids and i waited 12 minutes and it seemed everyone was oblivious to me. Ive been to stores in Sacramento CA, Reno Nv, Las Vegas Nv, Towson Md and Los Angeles and they are all the same. oh yeah back to the experience i was getting mad at the wait and decided to stop at wal greens on the way home…….who needs that damned nifty little apple bag.
#29 Daniel Dumas says:Well, I’ve been to several stores across the southeastern US and northeastern US and have never really encountered that problem. There is always a counter that has at least 2 people standing at it, or if you prefer the example of the Fifth Ave. Store in Manhattan, 15 people waiting to check you out.
But nevertheless, there have always been employees with the credit/debit swipe machines either in their pockets or on their hands when the store gets extremely busy or overwhelming.
#30 Pat says:The three stores near me have no registers either. It is the most annoying thing in the world. Like you I just want to run in, buy something and leave. Nope, sorry, not possible.
After switching from PCs recently (after 30 years) I was very used to being able run into a Best Buy or the like grab something and go. Now it seems I *have* to go to the apple store and deal with their idea of customer service. Bah.
#31 Scott H says:I’m fortunate that my Apple store has the 3 iMac checkout in front. Maybe all of you who deal with Apple stores that have eliminated this should make your displeasure known to the staff (politely, of course). If enough customers tell them this, maybe Apple will reconsider their decision and re-establish a checkout counter and at least one employee stationed there.
#32 Paul says:My local Apple Store in Atlanta just remodeled everything and expanded their store to have more space. The store is huge now (still not quite a flagship store experience, but the best Atlanta has by far). As part of this renovation, they did away with all registers whatsoever. I think the Genius bar allows for sales, but 99% of the purchases are done wirelessly through their PDA things. At times it has been much faster (they now have my credit card in their system, so no typing my email address, and no printing receipts either. Sometimes it’s hard to find someone, though, that’s the only time it’s a problem. Overall a good thing, though.
#33 Daren McDougal says:Let m say that my earlier comments were not meant to say the apple store I’d not great, definite is an awesome experience. Think about fryes, think about best buy or circus city, my point wasits not the place to go for a quick purchase please forget typos used my iPhone
#34 Marc says:After reading everyone’s comments, this is a rather interesting post to say the least, but I just wanted to add in my $0.02
Sure we have all had different experiences at the Apple stores we go to, albeit for some it can be a love/hate relationship as to purchases. As noted by others, I agree having the EZ Pay PDA devices adds an essential asset for the store and customers. Many times I have run into a store for an adapter, headphones, case, keyboard, etc. and have been able to check out within a few minutes, clearly depending on how many customers are in a store.
Additionally, having my receipts emailed to me, what a pleasure that is. Now I do not loose the reciept in a gust of wind or throw it out by accident with the rest of the receipts in my wallet, or forget to take it out of the bag before i throw out the bag! Furthermore, even if you do not have the physical receipt because it was emailed to you, think about how you are doing a very small part as an Environmentally (Sub)Conscious) consumer. Think about how much paper would be saved if we all had e-bill statements and receipts sent to our emails? Not to get away from the point of all of this, although Apple’s receipts may seem to be only the longer side at times for when all you purchase is a headphone adapter, while on the other hand all I can say to that is “Circuit City and Best Buy.” Next time you go to one of them think about how much faster you would get through the store if they had similar machines, and think about how much paper/trees we would be saving if for your purchase you did not always get the latest copy of the torah or new york times for you single item purchase!
Back to another point of finding an employee, I do not see how this is difficult as they all have the same shirt on. Sure they may be busy with other customers, but at every store I have been to, I have never had a problem finding someone for help or to pay for my purchase. I might have to wait a few minutes for some help or to pay, but having their level of customer satisfaction is worth waiting for.
All in all, I am always pleased with the customer service at every Apple store I have been to and although at times we may all have a little issue on something, next time you are in another store think about how it compares to shopping in an Apple Store. Now if we can only get car dealerships to be more like Apple Stores….but I will save that for another time.
#35 Daderdog says:I don’t see what the issue is. I have been to Apple stores in a variety of cities. I live in San Antonio and their store is a joy to visit. Not one time have I been in there and not been able to purchase what I wanted. In fact, I was there on iPhone day, and even though the store was mobbed, and I wasn’t getting a phone, I was able to get in and out in no time. It may be a local training issue for those of you who are having problems. But, in the end, don’t you just enjoy going to a store where the staff has a working knowledge of the product they sell (as opposed to Best Buy, etc. where they can’t even read the manual to answer your questions)?
#36 ovrsightcommittee says:Your just one of these self entitled boneheads who couldn’t give a rats butt about those who are contemplating making a paradigm switch from Window$ to Mac or someone who is getting the time of day by having their computing questions answered by a dedicated and helpful Mac Specialist. I’m certain there was a time in your life when you didn’t know squat about computers and had to ask questions. Imagine that person who was helping you suddenly cut short because there was another impatient bonehead.
Mmm, lets see, if you had a question about Dell’s at their little kiosk, I’ve been there…not much help I’d say, but they do try. Relax dude, take a chill pill. You and people like you ***** and moan and groan about having to wait minutes for service. Families wait months and sometimes a year to see their loved one come back from the war - sometimes in a casket. I’m not a warmonger nor am I an Apple fanatic. We have both systems at home.
All I’m saying is people…it’s not all about you. Learn a little patience.
#37 Josh Pigford says:@ovrsightcommittee: I appreciate the name calling and comparing my desire for a decent shopping experience to people dying in Iraq. It’s quite sensationalist of you.
Step back a minute and read what you wrote. Do you honestly think I somehow put more importance on shopping than people dying? Of course I don’t. But this is a blog about Apple. We don’t cover wars…we cover Apple.
If you think we shouldn’t talk about things like customer experience when it comes to Apple then I’m afraid you’ll need to stop reading our blog. We’re not changing that.
#38 piminnowcheez says:I’ve never been to an Apple store that didn’t have a plain old counter o’ registers, and I don’t think I’d like this free-floating checkout business very much. If I liked human interaction, I wouldn’t spend so much time on my computer. (Joking! Really!)
The only unpleasant experience I’ve had at an Apple store was a surprising and *really* irritating degree of pushback from a checkout person when I wouldn’t give her my personal information for a cash purchase. She argued with me, acted like it simply wasn’t an option not to give her my name and whatever else she asked for, and in the end when I kept refusing, she poured on the attitude like I’d taken a dump on the counter. Really astonishingly rude. I rarely get worked up in these situations, but my god was I steamed.
#39 limitedition says:I was at the apple store near me about 2 months ago, and I was informed by one of the employees that apple was headed in a direction that would eliminate the desinated terminals for checking out.
I certianly hope that is not the case as well. I usually go in to get what I need and then I am out the door. I dont want to have to wait on an associate who is usually being asked millions of questions about and ipod in order to checkout. Not good for those who are on the go, or impatient. I would be quite annoyed.
#40 Alli says:I have to admit that I have not noticed a problem with the setup but I live in NY and the store nearest me is 24 hours and I’m generally going there to wonder around and check stuff out and not to immediately purchase something. I will say that both stores in Manhattan have both registers and tons of people walking around waiting to help you and check you out on the spot which I think is great!
#41 LK says:I went to my local Apple store in Bridgewater, NJ the other day to get new earphones for my iPod. I stood fir in line, waiting for the two people behind the desk who were helping other customers with non-purchasing issues. NO ONE wanted to take my money! Finally after 5 minutes I got one clerk’s attention and was told that I was on the wrong side of the rope. Oh please. I do not like going into the Apple store. It’s a holier than thou attitude and I resent it.
#42 Grant says:My local Apple store (Toronto, Canada, in Yorkdale shopping mall) has a desk at the front with three or four cash registers. It’s always busy, so they keep some people behind cash, and they have crowd-control ropey things too.
#43 Richard says:The APPLE STORES are the greatest outlets ever. I’m always lured into the store by the greatest displays. However, all that exciting experience is washed away by the sales people working in the stores. Does anybody at Apple care about training those people? What about replacing them with robots? The robots would be much warmer, friendlier and less sarcastic than the salespeople. Robots would not make sarcastic comments or faces to other robots about their customers. I begged my friends to stop me if I ever mention about going into an Apple Store again. I was doing really well for the last 12 months with my promise of not stepping in any of the Apple stores, until the new iPod Touch was released. Because I still wanted to honor my promise, I decided to call the store to see if they had the product in stock, so I would ask a friend to pick up the product for me.
Here’s the phone conversation that I had with one of the sales person at The Apple Store Eaton Centre, Toronto, Canada on Sept 07, 2007 around 5:00 PM.
Salesperson: “ApStoEaCenterrrrr!!!” I was greeted by a not so friendly Mac Genius, and I guess she couldn’t say “Apple Store Eaton Centre” after handling so many calls, so she combined the first syllables of each word into one word to express her frustration - “ApStoEaCenterrrr!”
FIRST TRY
Me: “Do you…” . Even before I finished my question, she interrupted me by shouting “NOOOOO!”.
Me: “Do you…” and she shouted “NOOOOOO!” once again.
Me: “May I…” and she shouted “NOOOO!” again. So I decided to play her game of interruptions, regardless of my mom’s advice when I was kid (”Do not talk when other people are talking!!!”).
Me: “May I finish my question before you say ‘NO’?” I shouted back.
Salesperson: “I know what you are going to ask, and the answer is NO”. After that answer, of course I would not ask if the iPod Touch was available in stock, so I thought about asking for the availability of another product such as the iMac, Apple TV, etc, which I know it’s in the stores already. However, before I had the chance to start the question, she hang up on me.
SECOND TRY
I was in a good mood that day, so I didn’t let that drive me insane. I assumed she had a bad day, but I still wanted to know when the iPod Touch was going to be available in the stores. So I decided to call again… I waited 5 minutes, hoping she would go to the washroom change her “iPad” (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1BUH9eXy18), then I called again.
Salesperson: “ApStoEaCenterrrrr!!!” It’s very encouraging to hear gibberish that sounds like the real name of the store. I was expecting another pleasurable conversation with the Mac Genius Girl.
Me: “Do you…”. and she interrupts again.
Salesperson: “Didn’t I say ‘NO’ before?”. The first picture that came to my mind was of a chubby dominatrix with the Apple logo on her chest and a whip on the other hand. She was ready for total domination and humiliation. That may turn-on a lot of people, but I must admit that I’m pretty vanilla, so I replied…
Me: “I’m so sorry to disturb you…” and before I finished my apologetic statement, she hang up on me again. I had a great day and I wouldn’t let that spoil my day, so I called it a day.
THIRD TRY
It’s Saturday morning on beautiful sunny Toronto. I had to go shopping at Sherway Gardens Mall where there’s another Apple store (hopefully with polite Mac Geniuses), and it happens that one of the Mac Geniuses was just coming out of the store, so I approached him with a quick question. I could see the “look of death” in his eyes. How dare I stop him during his break, but he couldn’t ran away.
Me: “Do you have the iPod Touch in stock?”
Salesperson: “No”. And his body language tells me that he is ready to go for his break.
Me: “Any ideas when it will be available in the stores?”
Salesperson: “At Christmas”. How could Apple release a product in the beginning of September, and not be available in the stores until Christmas? The fulfillment process must be really screwed up. I felt like saying that Apple would be out of business by Christmas if they don’t do anything about their customer service, but he couldn’t care less.
Me: “Do you know if iPod Touch is available in the stores in the USA?” I was willing to drive to Buffalo-NY and get one.
Salesperson: “I don’t work in the USA… d’oh. I don’t know. ” and he walked away before I asked any more questions.
Oh well… I guess Apple can get away with such bad Sales staff. I still think Apple creates great products, but the bad experiences that I had with Customer Service makes me think about going back to the PC World again. I’m already prepared to hear “I told you so” from my friends.
I know it’s hard to believe, but you can check the APPLE Customer Service for yourself. Call the Apple Store Eaton Centre, in Toronto Canada, and ask anything about the iPod Touch. You can reach them at (647) 258-0801. I hope you get the Apple Dominatrix.
What happened to the polite Canadians? Where is Apple recruiting those people from? What about sending them for Customer Service training?
Has anybody else had a bad customer service experience like me? I’m posting this message in a few newsgroups and it would be nice to hear your experiences. Have you converted back from Mac to PC? If so, is there any counseling or support group out there? Would the PC world accept me back? Pleeease!
#44 fitzage says:Apple used to give their retail employees phenomenal training. Sadly, they don’t really refresh this training, and anyone who is hired after the store opens doesn’t get the same level of training.
#45 Nick says:i felt the SAME way about the Apple store in Stamford, CT. SO ANNOYING
#46 Bradley says:No cash registers in annoying. Takes way to long to checkout. 20-25 minutes to buy an ipod nano and an armband. Come on people.
#47 Karen says:The Apple Store in Rancho Cucamonga, California, did away with their register counter. They moved the “genius” bar to the back where the registers used to be, and there is no visible way to purchase without standing awkwardly while an employee finishes with another customer. The employees are hard to distinguish from other customers unless you like examining strangers’ clothing, since they are wearing normal shirts in a normal color, distinguished only by some small lettering on a sleeve. Some wear badges on lanyards, and some wear no name tag of any type. When I finally was able to find one to ask if there was a register (I wanted to pay with cash), it turned out a part of the genius bar was “registers” where you could check out. There is no visible indication of this; the very prominent sign over it said genius bar and had no suggestion of cash registers. The “registers” are laptops with no POS terminal in sight, so there’s no way to tell by looking that you can pay here.
I then stood in line and watched them demand identification from every customer, no matter what they were purchasing (it wasn’t just iphones). One credit card customer had clearly been doing his homework and pointed out they were not allowed to require additional identification for credit card purchases. He cited the merchant agreement which prohibited it, and was very pleasant and patient with the employees. He got bumped from one person to another, stalled very obviously by a “supervisor” who got caught in a lie because he couldn’t remember what story he’d been telling a few minutes earlier.
I got to watch all of this because the line was moving so slowly. Finally I just quietly put my would-be purchases back and left. The whole visit left a sour taste in my mouth and I have no desire to return to an Apple Store.
I don’t know what Apple was thinking with this move to do away with registers, or make them invisible. Offering the option to check out with a hand-held is great, but it shouldn’t be the default and registers should be identifiable as such. Why would you make it hard for your customers to give you money? Is this part of the “too smug to be polite, helpful, or informed about the merchandise” Apple stores seem to have adopted?
#48 Matt says:Regarding the last comment, it’s odd that they would require identification.
When I worked there, it was policy at the Apple Store to ask for identification, but it was also policy to just say OK and continue the transaction if the person declined.
#49 Dan S. says:The Credit Card ID verification is required if the card is not signed. If the card isn’t signed and they don’t have ID, then their only choice is to pay in cash — checks require a government ID with an address that matches the one on the check.
If the card is signed and the cardholder refuses to produce ID, the transaction must proceed.
#50 Dan S. says:@Richard: I doubt you were ever talking to any “Geniuses” — they only handle hardware repair and service; they don’t know inventory, they don’t answer the phones and they don’t handle retail sales.
As for the iPod Touch availability pre-November, stores were getting sporadic shipments of 10-20 at a time and they’d be gone within an hour of opening. The staff is not made aware of future deliveries, their timing or contents and quantity Ironically, at the same time, you could buy it online at the same price and have it delivered within 5-10 days.
It’s very hard to be civil to every person who calls, inquiring about iPod Touch/iTouch/podTouch/phone-less iPhones/etc (yes, I was asked for all of those) inventory, then when told that there aren’t any in stock and you don’t know when the next shipment will come, they either: a) rudely hang up, b) berate you for wasting their time, or c) try to figure out the secret apple code phrase that will get them access to the super secret reserve inventory that all stores keep in case Steve walks in unannounced and screams “free iPods for everyone!”
It’s also equally hard to be genial when, in the middle of a 9-hour day, someone tries to grab you during a 15-minute break to ask a question that they could have just as easily asked someone who isn’t on break — I’m sure you really enjoy it when your boss/co-workers/clients/etc call you during your dinner to ask you a question they could have found the answer to on their own.
It’s also pretty amazing how everyone complains if you don’t answer their call within 2 rings, but the same people roll their eyes when you answer a call while they’re standing in line. (The phone at the store is constantly ringing.)
Anyway, the Concierge position is designed to alleviate a lot of these issues — I can’t say whether or not it’s working, as I left Apple shortly before the position came online.
#51 Charlie says:. You need to find the apple employees with easy pay units! Its the way to go in and out.
#52 Matt says:Exactly, Charlie. But that’s easier said than done. I shouldn’t have to hunt for someone to take my money.
#53 Chris says:I went to one of the apple stores in San Antonio interested in buying a macbook. We were confronted by an associate who explained that the display table where the macbooks are was only open for people purchasing the iphone 3g and if I was not going to buy one, then I should step away. Completely Rude and condescending. What is worse is it seems that all of the associates in that store behave this way normally. Apple lost my interest in the macbook by not caring about its customers.
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