Top Twenty Metro Areas in need of an Apple Store
I've been tracking Apple's retail effort for a while now and I've, not surprisingly, noticed the correlation between where the stores open and the population of metropolitan areas. Using the 2000 census and the ranking by population of Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Areas (CMSA) and Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) for the 50 US states and the District of Columbia one gets this list of top 20 metro areas without a store or without a store planned (for this purpose "planned" means confirmed by Apple's website.)
- Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Virginia
- New Orleans, Louisiana
- Greensboro/Winston-Salem, North Carolina
- Providence, Rhode Island
- Louisville, Kentucky
- Greenville/Spartanburg, South Carolina
- Dayton, Ohio
- Fresno, California
- Birmingham, Alabama
- Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Omaha, Nebraska
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Knoxville, Tennessee
- El Paso, Texas
- Bakersfield, California
- Allentown/Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
- Harrisburg/ Lebanon, Pennsylvania
- Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
- Toledo, Ohio
- Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Comments
Edit: Wow. I'm wrong-- we're hemorrhaging people fast. The area slipped behind those two to only 624,000 now.
Originally posted by Sayhey
I've been tracking Apple's retail effort for a while now and I've, not surprisingly, noticed the correlation between where the stores open and the population of metropolitan areas. Using the 2000 census and the ranking by population of Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Areas (CMSA) and Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) for the 50 US states and the District of Columbia one gets this list of top 20 metro areas without a store or without a store planned (for this purpose "planned" means confirmed by Apple's website.)
Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Virginia
New Orleans, Louisiana
Greensboro/Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Providence, Rhode Island
Louisville, Kentucky
Greenville/Spartanburg, South Carolina
Dayton, Ohio
Fresno, California
Birmingham, Alabama
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Omaha, Nebraska
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Knoxville, Tennessee
El Paso, Texas
Bakersfield, California
Allentown/Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg/ Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Toledo, Ohio
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
The first five are the only metro areas with over 1 million people without an Apple store or one planned to open this year. There are already rumors of coming stores in Virginia Beach, Providence, Dayton, Fresno, and Tulsa, but there is no confirmation yet. This is one list on which it is not desirable to make number one.
Thank you for posting this it is pretty insightful and equally disturbing to me. It confirms that Apple is definatly a stickler for choosing the best locations within a city. I can only hope that they are doing their best to eject/dismiss/boot the culpret who is causing our city to remain on this list
Originally posted by Playmaker
Thank you for posting this it is pretty insightful and equally disturbing to me. It confirms that Apple is definatly a stickler for choosing the best locations within a city. I can only hope that they are doing their best to eject/dismiss/boot the culpret who is causing our city to remain on this list
I guess the "good news" is that of the 103 existing stores (counting Friday's Jacksonville opening) there are only 14 that are in metro areas smaller than New Orleans. Of the 26 confirmed stores planned for this year (and not yet opened) only 6 are in metro areas smaller than New Orleans. So Apple has been concentrating on areas with larger population, but is also now focusing on areas of the same size of New Orleans. I can't believe that you folks aren't going to get a store soon.
Greenville/Spartanburg, South Carolina
Thank goodness, does this mean South Carolina will finally get an Apple Store?
We don't even have a re-seller in the entire state, much less an Apple store!
Originally posted by iPoster
Thank goodness, does this mean South Carolina will finally get an Apple Store?
We don't even have a re-seller in the entire state, much less an Apple store!
Normally I would say yes, but the traditional centers in South Carolina are Charleston and Columbia. Both are much smaller. Only the new West Des Moines store is located in a smaller metro area. So if I had to guess, I'd bet on quite a few other locations before a South Carolina one. Perhaps next year?
Originally posted by Sayhey
Normally I would say yes, but the traditional centers in South Carolina are Charleston and Columbia. Both are much smaller. Only the new West Des Moines store is located in a smaller metro area. So if I had to guess, I'd bet on quite a few other locations before a South Carolina one. Perhaps next year?
I understand the population isssue, but come on, Charleston can support a Hummer dealer, what's keeping Apple away?
At least give us a Mini store!
Originally posted by iPoster
I understand the population isssue, but come on, Charleston can support a Hummer dealer, what's keeping Apple away?
At least give us a Mini store!
Of course, but up to this point it has been a case of where they see other more lucrative locations. Now, it begins makes sense to argue that South Carolina must be considered a high priority in future expansion. It's really not personal.
Oh, btw, the fact there are no successful resellers in the state may well be a very good reason they haven't already placed a store there. No proven market for its products. Every store is supposed to be profitable within a year, and they don't like to take many chances.
Not that if I were in SC I wouldn't be mad as hell at the "the culpret."
Originally posted by Sayhey
Oh, btw, the fact there are no successful resellers in the state may well be a very good reason they haven't already placed a store there. No proven market for its products. Every store is supposed to be profitable within a year, and they don't like to take many chances.
Not that if I were in SC I wouldn't be mad as hell at the "the culpret."
There was a CompUSA in Columbia until this winter, but it closed for whatever reason. (probably due to the fact that CompUSA sucks in general, at least the stores I have been in over the years)
Originally posted by mattjohndrow
what about vermont? come on, we're big enough...
sure. Take a look at that list in the top post of the top twenty metro areas. I'd have to make a list of the top 114 metro areas without an Apple store for the largest metro area in Vermont (Burlington,) to be included. NOT that I have anything against the GREAT state of Vermont!
Originally posted by Sayhey
NOT that I have anything against the GREAT state of Vermont!
you better not. or else we'll...do something about it.
Originally posted by mattjohndrow
you better not. or else we'll...do something about it.
LOL, I give, I give! I will one day visit your fair state and hopefully there will be an Apple store there when i do.
POPULATION
Utah: 2.3 million
Salt Lake City Metro: 181,743
Salt Lake Area: 918,279
Wasatch Front: 1.4 million
The Wasatch Front is roughly 80 miles long with Ogden approximately 40 miles north of the Salt Lake Valley and Provo approximately 40 miles south of the Salt Lake Valley.
Originally posted by midwinter
Salt. Lake. City.
Yes. But. There. Is. A. Store. Opening. There. This. Year.
2005 stores
That place would just roll in the money.
Originally posted by His Dudeness
Hampton Roads NEEDS one. There is already an upscale mall in Norfolk called MacArthur Center. It's very upscale, enough so for an Apple Store.
That place would just roll in the money.
The mall most often mentioned is the Lynnhaven mall in Virginia Beach. I don't know what it's like, but hopefully the area will get a store soon.
Originally posted by Sayhey
The mall most often mentioned is the Lynnhaven mall in Virginia Beach. I don't know what it's like, but hopefully the area will get a store soon.
I was stationed in Norfolk from 1996 to 2002, and lived in Virginia Beach. Lynnhaven Mall was our favorite mall to got to. Not as fancy as the newer malls, but good size, recently (~2000) renovated and centrally located in VB. (Right off the highway running to the oceanfront, I-264; and at the crossroads of two main local roads) It was also the only mall at the time with a movie theatre right in the mall, good anchor stores, etc. Even has an indoor two level carousel!
McArthur mall was just opening around the time we were leaving, we never went to it because downtown Norfolk is notorious for bad traffic, and McArthur Center was derided for an extremely poor parking situation. They built the mall on a small plot of land with room for only a few parking garages, otherwise you had to park on the local streets.
Originally posted by Sayhey
Yes. But. There. Is. A. Store. Opening. There. This. Year.
2005 stores
/me droooooools and makes homer simpsons sounds gnahhfloagharflaghar
There still isn't an Apple store in every state. I don't understand why? At least every US capitol should have an Apple store in it or near by. But why Apple is continuing and placing Apple stores so close to one another while ignoring entire states is mind-boggling to me.
Originally posted by Dave K.
I really don't get Apple retail moves. I am lucky enough for an Apple store in Buffalo NY. Now I read that Apple in going to put another Apple store in Rochester NY, which is 50 miles away.
There still isn't an Apple store in every state. I don't understand why? At least every US capitol should have an Apple store in it or near by. But why Apple is continuing and placing Apple stores so close to one another while ignoring entire states is mind-boggling to me.
I think if you take a close look at where Apple's US stores are located, in general, it makes a lot of sense. What Apple has done is from the beginning to say that these stores must be profitable within one year. With that in mind, they choose areas where there are lots of traffic through the stores. That means locations in the most populated areas of the country and high profile shopping areas. Take a look at a few figures of the current locations and the ones announced for this year.
Of the consolidated metropolitan statistical areas (CMSA) and metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) in the 50 states and DC, we see that:
- Of the nine areas over 5 million people, Apple has at least 5 stores (including stores planned for this year) in 6 of them.
- Of the twenty-two metro areas with two million people, Apple has at least two stores (including planned stores for this year) in 20 of them.
- Of the 49 metro areas with more than one million people, Apple has at least one store or one store planned this year in 43 of them.
All of which shows that Apple's strategy is obviously to put the stores where the people are. Why place a store in Helena, Montana or Bismarck, North Dakota and loose money for years with the small customer base when they can make money selling products in the major urban areas?