Apple says it's reopening ~100 more stores in U.S. this week, walk-in customers OK in some

Apple says it is planning to reopen more than 100 US retail stores this week, and that because the COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing, most locations will only offer curbside or storefront service.

By this week's end, Apple says, about 130 out of its 271 U.S. stores will be open. Certain locations, but not all, will be allowing customers to walk inside the store and conduct transactions on-site with staff.

Excerpt from CNBC:

Apple's retail openings are being closely watched as both a key demand driver for Apple as well as a leading indicator for the health of the retail industry, where Apple's locations often anchor important malls or shopping districts.

The stores in the United States that have re-opened so far have focused on Apple's Genius Bar, which enables customers to get service and support for broken iPhones and other Apple products. Some stores re-opening this week will be available for walk-in customers.

This week we'll return to serving customers in many US locations," an Apple representative said in a statement. For customer safety and convenience, most stores will offer curbside or storefront service only, where we provide online order pick-up and Genius Bar appointments."

Apple's head of retail Deidre O'Brien wrote an open letter earlier this month outlining the company's retail re-opening strategy. In March, Apple closed its retail stores outside of China in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Apple will open about 100 more stores in the U.S. this week, with focus on curbside service

Historically, #Apple has been a genius at retail. Now would be a good time for it to re-invent curbside pick-up so that we all love and embrace it...https://t.co/xe4EXv5m4c

- Jessi Hempel (@jessiwrites) May 26, 2020

[via techmeme.com]