Apple fans and commuters using Manhattan’s Grand Central Terminal may be interested to know that the Cupertino company’s newest store will be opening at the station this Friday.
Apple’s retail webpage for the Grand Central store went live on Monday and states that the doors will be opening for the very first time at 10am. Expect much whooping and high-fiving to ensue.
Its trading hours may draw the attention of a few people – especially the people working there. To catch the early morning commuter traffic, the store at Grand Central will open on weekdays at 7am – a few hours earlier than its other stores around the world. Weekends will be a little easier on employees, with the store opening up at 10am on Saturdays and 11am on Sundays.
An estimated 750,000 use the station every day and with the store occupying a prime location it should have little trouble getting people through its doors. Moreover, with half the commuters using the station said to be earning more than $100,000 a year, there’ll surely be plenty of disposable income floating about that Apple will be keen to help them spend.
It’s thought that the new store covers somewhere in the region of 23,000 square feet of floor space, making it the largest store in Apple’s global retail empire. London’s Covent Garden store held the record up to now.
The arrival of the company’s new Grand Central store isn’t without controversy, with New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli currently investigating the terms of the deal between the electronics giant and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which is responsible for leasing the space inside the terminal building.
The store will be Apple’s fifth in Manhattan, adding to its more than 350 retail locations in 11 countries.
