Apple Store in former Clery's premises?

Doodah7

Reports in the Time and Indo today that the vultures who closed Clery's are attempting to get Apple to open a store on O'Connell Street. Would be a great coup if they managed to make it happen...

http://www.irishtimes.com/business/retail-and-services/natrium-sets-sights-on-apple-store-in-clerys-building-1.2619976

Creamy Goodness

Wow way to go and sully your reputation. What an awful property developer. Rule number 1 of dealing with Apple, you don't go blabbing to the press.

Good building for one but is Dublin big enough for a flag ship iconic building Apple Store?

readyletsgo

Ugh, Apple stores are just full of kids hanging around their god and charging their phones for free.

Store is massive though, would they use all 4 floors?

murpho999

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

Wow way to go and sully your reputation. What an awful property developer. Rule number 1 of dealing with Apple, you don't go blabbing to the press.

Good building for one but is Dublin big enough for a flag ship iconic building Apple Store?

Why isn't Dublin big enough? Catchment area of more than 1m?

Also , they would not have to take the whole building.

Creamy Goodness

murpho999 wrote: »

Why isn't Dublin big enough? Catchment area of more than 1m?

Also , they would not have to take the whole building.

I meant that Dublin may not be big enough for one of Apple's Flagship stores. Belfast's store is a small unit in a shopping mall.

Look at NYC, it's a giant cube.
Look at Paris, it's in a huge opera house.
Look at China, it's a giant cylinder.
Look at NYC, it's in an iconic train station.

Apple don't do things by halves but NYC, Paris, Shanghai have much larger catchment areas than Dublin. Apple wouldn't share the building either, each of the places I mentioned above (with the exception of the train station for obvious reasons) are single use Apple Store buildings.

Don't get me wrong, I'd absolutely love this to be true, but I think I'd rather wait than to get my hopes up based on a blabbing property developer firm.

Snickers Man

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

Wow way to go and sully your reputation. What an awful property developer. Rule number 1 of dealing with Apple, you don't go blabbing to the press.

Of course the utter cynics might think that this is a publicity stunt aimed at wafting away the smell caused by the closure of Clery's, which was surely an example of the unacceptable face of capitalism, by getting people all interested in the coolest company on earth (in some people's minds) establishing a presence there.

And even if Apple don't set up shop there, and the reports clearly say that Apple has "not made an announcement yet" then the hope is that people's focus will shift from "look what the bastards did to Clery's" to "Oh so unlucky. Never mind we must get an even better tenant than Apple to make O'Connell St attractive again. Why not Abercrombie & Fitch? Or Gap? Or Lego World?"

Gets people looking forward, not backwards.

Personally, the only reason I would go into an Apple Store on that site would be to stamp on a few iPods. But then I'm an old curmudgeon.

smash

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

I meant that Dublin may not be big enough for one of Apple's Flagship stores. Belfast's store is a small unit in a shopping mall.

Look at NYC, it's a giant cube.
Look at Paris, it's in a huge opera house.
Look at China, it's a giant cylinder.
Look at NYC, it's in an iconic train station.

Apple don't do things by halves but NYC, Paris, Shanghai have much larger catchment areas than Dublin. Apple wouldn't share the building either, each of the places I mentioned above (with the exception of the train station for obvious reasons) are single use Apple Store buildings.

Don't get me wrong, I'd absolutely love this to be true, but I think I'd rather wait than to get my hopes up based on a blabbing property developer firm.

Apple's flagship store in Spain is in a shopping mall on the south coast.

OU812

Would never happen for a number of reasons.

1) Wrong side of town (I'm a northsider)
2) Building is way too big
3) Catchment is way too small
4) Apple never do business with people who announced ahead of them.
5) Apple have absolutely zero interest in opening a store here. If they did, it'd be open by now.
6) We're nowhere near as important as we like to think we are.

maximoose

Rule number 1 of dealing with Apple, you don't go blabbing to the press.

4) Apple never do business with people who announced ahead of them.

Have they pulled out of opening stores because of this before?

murpho999

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

I meant that Dublin may not be big enough for one of Apple's Flagship stores. Belfast's store is a small unit in a shopping mall.

Look at NYC, it's a giant cube.
Look at Paris, it's in a huge opera house.
Look at China, it's a giant cylinder.
Look at NYC, it's in an iconic train station.

Apple don't do things by halves but NYC, Paris, Shanghai have much larger catchment areas than Dublin. Apple wouldn't share the building either, each of the places I mentioned above (with the exception of the train station for obvious reasons) are single use Apple Store buildings.

Don't get me wrong, I'd absolutely love this to be true, but I think I'd rather wait than to get my hopes up based on a blabbing property developer firm.

Why does it have to a be a flagship store?

Why can't the bulding be redesgned so that the bukidng is split in half for example.

Where there's a will there's a way as they say.

tallpaul

tallpaul wrote: »

Reports in the Time and Indo today that the vultures who closed Clery's are attempting to get Apple to open a store on O'Connell Street. Would be a great coup if they managed to make it happen...

http://www.irishtimes.com/business/retail-and-services/natrium-sets-sights-on-apple-store-in-clerys-building-1.2619976

Why would it be a great coup?

Let it to someone who pays taxes would be better.

Creamy Goodness

maximoose wrote: »

Have they pulled out of opening stores because of this before?

Not that I'm aware of, but they have in the past changed suppliers for their devices because they've blabbed about future earnings due to deals with Apple.

murpho999 wrote: »

Why does it have to a be a flagship store?

Why can't the bulding be redesgned so that the bukidng is split in half for example.

Where there's a will there's a way as they say.

I think it'd be a shame if the building was split, it's such an iconic building in Ireland. It would suit an Apple flagship so well but I just think we're too small for Apple to take the whole building.

murpho999

Deleted User wrote: »

Why would it be a great coup?

Let it to someone who pays taxes would be better.

Oh this stupid argument, that ignores they jobs they create, leading to more income tax, and PRSI (Including employers) and ancilliary businesses that evolve around them.

murpho999

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

Not that I'm aware of, but they have in the past changed suppliers for their devices because they've blabbed about future earnings due to deals with Apple.



I think it'd be a shame if the building was split, it's such an iconic building in Ireland. It would suit an Apple flagship so well but I just think we're too small for Apple to take the whole building.

Building can stay the same just arrange the entrances differently so that it's split internally.

Eugene Norman

Apple wouldn't need all the floors and as the report said the top two floors could be office space.

Eugene Norman

OU812 wrote: »

Would never happen for a number of reasons.

1) Wrong side of town (I'm a northsider)
2) Building is way too big
3) Catchment is way too small
4) Apple never do business with people who announced ahead of them.
5) Apple have absolutely zero interest in opening a store here. If they did, it'd be open by now.
6) We're nowhere near as important as we like to think we are.

I don't get 2. There are Apple stores in Bristol and Bath and Belfast. 2 in Bristol in fact.

And Cambridge. Lots more smaller than Dublin.


http://www.apple.com/uk/retail/storelist/

godtabh

Eugene Norman wrote: »

I don't get 2. There are Apple stores in Bristol and Bath and Belfast. 2 in Bristol in fact.

And Cambridge. Lots more smaller than Dublin.


http://www.apple.com/uk/retail/storelist/

The argument is around flagship stores/stores. A big difference in both.

Sad Professor

Apple won't be lured into opening a store here. They'll do it when they are good and ready. They've also become very fussy about the location of their flagship stores. They will wait until the absolute perfect location becomes available. Most likely somewhere around Grafton Street.

They open stores on a country by country basis. The first store in a country is quickly followed by more. So the size of Dublin compared to Belfast or wherever isn't the point. It's the size of the Irish market as a whole.

Also Compub have only been on Grafton Street for about 5 or 6 years. They presumedly received some assurance from Apple that they had no plans to open a store here for a decade at least.

murpho999

murpho999 wrote: »

Oh this stupid argument, that ignores they jobs they create, leading to more income tax, and PRSI (Including employers) and ancilliary businesses that evolve around them.

You could say that about a Macari's. Would you say that was a "great coup"?

Cyrus

Deleted User wrote: »

You could say that about a Macari's. Would you say that was a "great coup"?

how many people do macari's employ in ireland

endacl

murpho999 wrote: »

Oh this stupid argument, that ignores they jobs they create, leading to more income tax, and PRSI (Including employers) and ancilliary businesses that evolve around them.

Also, they'd bring geniuses with them. O'Connell St could use a flagship full o' geniuses.

Eugene Norman

godtabh wrote: »

The argument is around flagship stores/stores. A big difference in both.

the argument on flagship stores assumed the premise about flagship stores Apparently we are too small for a flagship and too big for a normal Apple store. odd arguments.

murpho999

Deleted User wrote: »

You could say that about a Macari's. Would you say that was a "great coup"?

Think you have a Macari's size chip on your shoulder.

Comparing a local chipper to an massive organisation like Apple employing thousands of people.

Armonline

Heard a theory before that Apple won't open a retail store in the republic as this would affect that way their tax is calculated in Ireland for the business in cork

whiterebel

murpho999 wrote: »

Oh this stupid argument, that ignores they jobs they create, leading to more income tax, and PRSI (Including employers) and ancilliary businesses that evolve around them.

Somewhere in the region of €8-10Billion in avoided taxes is hardly a stupid argument.

murpho999

Armonline wrote: »

Heard a theory before that Apple won't open a retail store in the republic as this would affect that way their tax is calculated in Ireland for the business in cork

This always gets said but I cannot see how it is true at all.

arch_stanton

Armonline wrote: »

Heard a theory before that Apple won't open a retail store in the republic as this would affect that way their tax is calculated in Ireland for the business in cork

That's an urban legend. Plenty of bigger countries than Ireland don't have an apple store.

I'd be very surprised if Apple moved into Clerys. The building is too big and as someone said above, they don't like to share. Even their flagship stores don't have particularly massive floorspace. If they are to open in Dublin I would expect it to be around the Grafton Street/Stephen's Green area or else with a non-flagship store in the Dundrum Centre. That's much more their style than stuck between chippers on O'Connell Street.

Having said that, I'd welcome a store anywhere, even if they opened from a car boot by the boardwalk.

arch_stanton

The main flagship store in Spain opened in Madrid last year after they spent 2 years refurbishing the building.

http://www.apple.com/es/retail/puertadelsol/

Madrid has the population of the island of Ireland and still the store is much smaller than Clerys. The ground floor is the main area with phones, iPads, Macs etc and there's a smaller mezzanine area with headphones, covers and other accessories. They use the rest of the building as office space and with most of the Ireland operations based in Cork they probably wouldn't need that in Dublin

Snake Plisken

smash wrote: »

Apple's flagship store in Spain is in a shopping mall on the south coast.

Apples flagship store is Puerta del Sol in Madrid, they renovated an old historical hotel, I was I there last Summer! I would have thought Spple would be more inclined to open in the Grafton Street/Stephens Green area! Imagine walking out of the O'Connell Street Apple Store with your brand new IPhone 7 and getting mugged by some junkie!!

Type 17

Armonline wrote: »

Heard a theory before that Apple won't open a retail store in the republic as this would affect that way their tax is calculated in Ireland for the business in Cork

murpho999 wrote: »

This always gets said but I cannot see how it is true at all.

Well, Ireland is Apple's EU HQ country, and is where they pay tax. So, if anything, they would be more likely to have Apple Retail Stores here (they have one at Cupertino, their world HQ).
If towns in the UK as small as Norwich (pop. 140k) and Exeter (pop. 125k) can have Apple Retail Stores, then we should have perhaps three or four in the RoI (or at least more than none).
The only difference in the UK is that it is not Apple's EU tax-base...

Snickers Man

Snake Plisken wrote: »

! Imagine walking out of the O'Connell Street Apple Store with your brand new IPhone 7 and getting mugged by some junkie!!

If it was a former Clery's employee, I'd be on the side of the junkie

Bob24

Eugene Norman wrote: »

I don't get 2. There are Apple stores in Bristol and Bath and Belfast. 2 in Bristol in fact.

And Cambridge. Lots more smaller than Dublin.


http://www.apple.com/uk/retail/storelist/

Thing is Apple doesn't tend to establish a physical retail organisation in a country if they don't think they either have potential for a couple or stores (or if it is just one or 2 stores, it has to be very high profile ones).

The small UK stores are there because their are part of an existing and larger UK retail structure.

Not sure the ROI as a whole is a large enough market for them to be interested.

Grab All Association

Type 17 wrote: »

Well, Ireland is Apple's EU HQ country, and is where they pay tax. So, if anything, they would be more likely to have Apple Retail Stores here (they have one at Cupertino, their world HQ).
If towns in the UK as small as Norwich (pop. 140k) and Exeter (pop. 125k) can have Apple Retail Stores, then we should have perhaps three or four in the RoI (or at least more than none).
The only difference in the UK is that it is not Apple's EU tax-base...

I'm not joking. Last year the people of Nenagh thought an Apple store was opening at the old O'Connor's site.

whiterebel

Grab All Association wrote: »

I'm not joking. Last year the people of Nenagh thought an Apple store was opening at the old O'Connor's site.

Michael Lowry told them he was going to get Apple into Tipp......right beside the super casino......:)

murpho999

Bob24 wrote: »

Thing is Apple doesn't tend to establish a physical retail organisation in a country if they don't think they either have potential for a couple or stores (or if it is just one or 2 stores, it has to be very high profile ones).

The small UK stores are there because their are part of an existing and larger UK retail structure.

Not sure the ROI as a whole is a large enough market for them to be interested.

There is only one in Belgium.

I don't see what they can't have one in Dublin and another in Cork.

Bob24

murpho999 wrote: »

There is only one in Belgium.

I don't see what they can't have one in Dublin and another in Cork.

This is because it only opened recently and they will obviously open more. Belgium is a market almost 3 times the one of Ireland.

Realistically on 2 cites are possible large enough for an Apple Store in Ireland and none of them is super high profile. If you set the bar at a city like Cork, you can easily find 5 locations in Belgium.

murpho999

Bob24 wrote: »

This is because it only opened recently and they will obviously open more. Belgium is a market almost 3 times the one of Ireland.

Realistically on 2 cites are possible large enough for an Apple Store in Ireland and none of them is super high profile. If you set the bar at a city like Cork, you can easily find 5 locations in Belgium.

I don't think this population thing is fully correct.

Look at Australia. Population of approx 24 million but has 23 stores.

Netherlands. 17 Million but only has 3 stores.

Ireland could easily support one store, and saying stuff like it's too small or doesn't count is just running down the country to be honest.

Grab All Association

whiterebel wrote: »

Michael Lowry told them he was going to get Apple into Tipp......right beside the super casino......:)

It was Alan Kelly who's a much bigger gombeen

The people of Nenagh were fully convinced it would be Apple. Turned out to be a Mr. Price store.

Bob24

murpho999 wrote: »

I don't think this population thing is fully correct.

Look at Australia. Population of approx 24 million but has 23 stores.

Netherlands. 17 Million but only has 3 stores.

Ireland could easily support one store, and saying stuff like it's too small or doesn't count is just running down the country to be honest.

Well - the fact is no country the size of Ireland has retail presence. I don't think it is running down the country to be saying that, just pragmatism. Apple's retail footprint is very limited (only 18 countries/territories) and from an Apple exec's perspective there are many other places where it makes more business sense to open stores before thinking of Ireland.

Sad Professor

As I said in the Mac forum, Apple almost certainly weigh up the size of the market against how much market share they stand to gain by opening a store in a country. Which is where Ireland is disadvantaged. Not only are we small, but Apple products are already extremely popular here and fairly well served by Apple resellers. They could give Irish users a better customer experience by opening a store here, but they are unlikely to increase their presence in the country significantly. They'll get around to us eventually, but most of their focus right now is on Asia where they have the most to gain.

Why do Apple go country-by-country, why does the first store have to be a flagship store in the best location possible, why don't they just slot a store in anywhere? Because they are Apple and they have their own way of doing things. I mean, look how they develop software: moving the same small group of engineers around, resulting in "drive-by updates" followed by years of bugginess and neglect. Look at how their organisational structures is great for developing new hardware products but terrible for cloud services. Apple don't always make sense.

godtabh

Sad Professor wrote: »

Apple don't always make sense.

They dont need too. They have a business model that works. Online amateur MBA's are constantly trying to figure it out. Competitors are constantly trying to figure it out. Thats why Apple are where they are. No one has.

They have power over their entire supply chain and their supply chain works brilliantly

Snickers Man

Doodah7 wrote: »

Reports in the Time and Indo today that the vultures who closed Clery's are attempting to get Apple to open a store on O'Connell Street. Would be a great coup if they managed to make it happen...

http://www.irishtimes.com/business/retail-and-services/natrium-sets-sights-on-apple-store-in-clerys-building-1.2619976

Coming up to the second anniversary of this "announcement". Any sign of this appearing any time soon?

Or was it all bollox from the word go?

Grab All Association

Snickers Man wrote: »

Coming up to the second anniversary of this "announcement". Any sign of this appearing any time soon?

Or was it all bollox from the word go?

Nope and no Apple store in Nenagh either despite Alan Kelly voters optimism it would open.

Franz Von Peppercorn

For tax reasons....

naasrd

Was utter b from the start. A fake story used to generate interest in Clerys and side step away from what they had done to the workers. Some suckers swallowed it whole.

Snickers Man

naasrd wrote: »

Was utter b from the start. A fake story used to generate interest in Clerys and side step away from what they had done to the workers. Some suckers swallowed it whole.

That's what I thought (and think)

rabbitinlights

Franz Von Peppercorn wrote: »

For tax reasons....

I've heard this a few times and it kinda makes sense - when you order from Apple.ie, it ships from the UK so they seem adverse to having an Irish trading entity.

Intriguing.

whiterebel

rabbitinlights wrote: »

I've heard this a few times and it kinda makes sense - when you order from Apple.ie, it ships from the UK so they seem adverse to having an Irish trading entity.

Intriguing.

Might be more to do with lack of sales in Ireland. Could be that they ship out to the UK and back in to Ireland because they’ll get a better deal to do that rather than deliver a unit within Ireland. Might be something to do with a VAT free exemption for exports either, they need to send it out to bring it in to avoid VAT on import of raw materials. You really don’t know with Apple, they have the strangest thought processes at times. Buying from apple.com/ie is an Irish trading entity, isn’t it?

Creamy Goodness

all BTO iMacs come from cork. Apple have a weird process when it comes to shipping but when they can get a new phone from Shenzhen to the back arse of Mayo in three days I’m inclined to believe they know what they’re doing.