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Image #4: Angle showcasing the glass walls and architectural design.

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Image #4: Angle showcasing the glass walls and architectural design.

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Image #5: satellite map image of the store, in the Broadway Plaza shopping area Walnut Creek

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Image #5: satellite map image of the store, in the Broadway Plaza shopping area Walnut Creek

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Image #8: Apple's first Retail store in Virginia, opened 2001

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Image #8: Apple's first Retail store in Virginia, opened 2001

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Image #6: Me checking out the products in-store.

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Image #6: Me checking out the products in-store.

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Image #9: Apple's different designed stores all around the world (please click to see better)

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Image #9: Apple's different designed stores all around the world (please click to see better)

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In the late 90s, the first Apple store was opened and planted in the public. Despite it seeming like a big step for Apple, they didn't have full control of the store. When Apple first started, they partnered with a company called CompUSA to bring their first-ever in-person retail store to the retail consumer tech market. A 9to5Mac article “Before The Genius Bar: Behind The Retail Designs That Paved The Way For 20 Years of Apple Stores” by Michael Steeber states “It was a baby step into retail for Apple” as the beginning of the iconic retail stores seen around the world today. Micheal Steeber described Steve Jobs, Apple's founder, as having an “amazing ability to bridge the perceived gap between technology and humans, redefining the conversation around technology to make it about how it can fit your life compared to how fast the CPU is.” When reading this I found it interesting because this not only gave me information about the origin, and a better understanding of the roots of Apple's retail market but also gave me an insight into the man behind Apple as a company showing the vision early on inside an apple store or the beginning of “The Apple Experience.”

From this vision, I fast-forward decades later into today. Apple has multiple stores all over the world and is currently working its way around the continent of Asia. After discovering the origin of the Apple storefront market, I set out to find their sales goals and strategies to give these amazing experiences in-store. Apple's mission statement according to the website is to “Serve the public good and empower people around the world, bringing us together like never before.” When paired with Apple's sales and marketing strategy, it gives the customer a deep connection with the storefront employees. An Inc.com article by Carmine Gallo touches on Apple's sales tactics titled “The Secret of Apple Insanely Great Customer Service." Highlighting Apple's 5-step sales strategy in-store can provide great experiences and build customer loyalty. Like many other companies, Apple has a sales acronym “A.P.P.L.E.” which they use to deliver these experiences. The acronym stands for Approach, Probe, Present solutions, Listen, and Resolve, and ends with a farewell. Through this simple system, they provide great customer service to all who wall in through those glass doors. I think when I look at this information it is a key piece in my findings while working on this essay. When I am going into the research looking for what “makes” the Apple experience and how it's different from other tech companies in store, it is important to know how they operate and conduct business that leads to this unique experience.

Moreover, when doing all of this research for this assignment I took the time to find an Apple store nearest to me and do my research on things I didn't know. When visiting the store I got a close-up view of Apple's architectural design. The store itself was mostly glass and had its natural wood and white tones throughout. I visited not only to get my information but also to go in and get a real-life example of the Apple experience inside their stores. I think this was crucial for helping me answer my critical question because it was another form of research like looking for worthy articles but instead much more hands-on.

When you're in there in person talking to an Apple “genius” or just shopping around comparing and contrasting models, you feel the world that Apple is trying to create inside.

Before going in and getting real-life experience with Apple's services and retail market I did some research to find the person or group of people behind Apple's architectural design. I stumbled upon a YouTube video from creator “MilesAboveTech” and he has a video titled “The Genius Behind Every Apple Store” where he interviews Deidre O’Brien the current senior vice president of Apple in the retail department. She states “The whole focus for them in every store is to put the customer at the center.” This lines up with my experiences in the store where I felt like despite multiple people in the store I was greeted and put at the center of that employee's focus. This is significant when comparing it to the stores I have visited like Samsung where I wasn't treated like the center focus but given more of a grocery store shopping experience, Where you walk in and buy something or don't. She also says “When you walk into an Apple store you can learn everything you want about the products” and “The whole goal in store is whatever the customers need, we are here and it is exceptional.” I think this point in her interview is highly important to my critical question because it is the base and statement from who is in charge of the Apple retail market. And that gives me the base of how to answer critical questions. Apple's in-store experience is different from other tech companies because it is tailored to a customer-first system not a “what can we sell you system?” and that is significant. On top of this, O’Brien speaks about the staff being a major part of this in-store experience stating “ Our teams are so passionate about our products and love Apple products and they love our customers” and “When we start there everything else becomes a little bit easier.” This statement speaks to the people who perform and provide these immense Apple experiences to us customers. I think looking at the statement “the employees are so passionate” is important. If everyone is happy there and wants to be there, customers receive immense experiences.

From a personal standpoint, this interview with the SVP of Apple's retail market which includes stores answers the critical question from my point of view. It is one thing to interpret or go off of third-party writers to find real information about a question and topic but hearing the person behind it all is a large step in the correct direction.

When I look at all of my evidence from personal interviews and time in store, to articles, to figuring out the deeper meanings of the big tech giant, I gather it all together and can come to a solid conclusion to my question: What is the Apple experience, and how is it different from other tech companies in-store and beyond? The Apple experience is intended to be a large combination of care, quality sales strategies, and impeccable design. When we combine their caring sales strategy with good employees who are passionate about what they are doing on top of a signature design on the outside you get the Apple Experience. When comparing all of these variables to other consumer technology markets such as Samsung, Best Buy, Target, and Walmart Apple separates itself entirely from them. And it is through this trinity working together that you are given greater in-store experiences compared to a Samsung or Target. To put it simply it is the quality of care for their customers that makes Apple's retail experience different from the rest of its market.

Before closing, I want to take some time to reflect on this journey. Through all of the research and digging to answer my critical question. I found so much more to a store that sells products, but a deeper understanding of how Apple is where it is today. As a big Apple fan, I was intrigued by the pieces I found through my search and now view Apple and its stores in a completely different light. I also think I found what it means behind the mission statement to “Bring us together like never before.” It is through experiences that loyalty and deep connection are built and that is something I now am more aware of in our world and society.

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This is an art piece of the Apple experience trinity that I speak on in my findings.