'Truly international' Piazza del Liberty Apple Store in Milan, Italy opening soon
On Monday, Apple declared that the Piazza del Liberty Apple Retail store in Milan, Italy that was made public with planning documents in January will be opening soon.
The store, occupying the location previously held by the Apollo Spazio Cinema, was called "ambitious and truly international" by planning officials when Apple proposed the venue in January. In addition to a complete renovation of the Apollo cinema interior, Apple has lowered the central area of Piazza del Liberty to make way for an outdoor amphitheater with broad terraced stairs.
Acting as the store's grand entryway is a tall glass waterfall and water bowls that anchor one end of the amphitheater. Stairs and an elevator lead down into the showroom floor below.
The space will serve as both an entrance into the store and a public space for hosting cultural events.
As part of the agreement to use Piazza del Liberty, Apple must pay the city a one-time fee of 768,732 euros to offset costs the administration previously incurred. In addition, Apple will pay an annual usage fee of 127,435 euros.
The store is designed by Foster + Partners, the same firm late Apple cofounder Steve Jobs tapped to work on the company's Apple Park headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.
The store, occupying the location previously held by the Apollo Spazio Cinema, was called "ambitious and truly international" by planning officials when Apple proposed the venue in January. In addition to a complete renovation of the Apollo cinema interior, Apple has lowered the central area of Piazza del Liberty to make way for an outdoor amphitheater with broad terraced stairs.
Acting as the store's grand entryway is a tall glass waterfall and water bowls that anchor one end of the amphitheater. Stairs and an elevator lead down into the showroom floor below.
The space will serve as both an entrance into the store and a public space for hosting cultural events.
As part of the agreement to use Piazza del Liberty, Apple must pay the city a one-time fee of 768,732 euros to offset costs the administration previously incurred. In addition, Apple will pay an annual usage fee of 127,435 euros.
The store is designed by Foster + Partners, the same firm late Apple cofounder Steve Jobs tapped to work on the company's Apple Park headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.
Comments
Are they building stores or art galleries.
Or both.
The unique Apple contribution is in making both the technology and the "temple" of its display attractive, magnetic, even irresistible. You can trace this attractiveness imperative back to Steve Jobs and his idyllic upbringing by his craftsman father in their Eichler home in the Silicon Valley of the new clean technology of information processing, and to the chemical enlightnment that was the environment of the counterculure in that part of California at the time.
I imagine there are 2 main options: 1. Apple buys them and makes them exclusive to Apple projects or 2. Apple buys them as a financial investment. In case 1, they would likely lose top talent and hurt the firm. In case 2, why would we expect that to be a better investment than any other? Besides, why should Apple limit themselves to one firm, when every top firm in the world clamors for their business?