Apple has devised a system to reopen its various retail stores including 12 stores in Canada. The often packed retail stores were shut down as part of social-distancing efforts to help negate the spread of COVID-19 months ago. Apple Stores are more than just retail hubs for picking up the latest computers, iPhones, and accessories. They are the key point of interaction between Apple and customers, the latter flock to their local Apple stores for service and support, as well as to partake of ongoing training and demos.
Deidre O’Brien, Apple's retail head, outlined the company's careful next steps in reopening its retail hubs. “Our commitment is to only move forward with a reopening once we’re confident we can safely return to serving customers from our stores,” O’Brien writes. “We look at every available piece of data — including local cases, near and long‑term trends, and guidance from national and local health officials. These are not decisions we rush into — and a store opening in no way means that we won’t take the preventative step of closing it again should local conditions warrant.”
Apple has 510 retail stores around the world, 80 per cent of these remained shut. Apple is gearing up to soft-open 25 more stores in the US, 12 in Canada, and 10 in Italy over the next week. The company will likely see how those pilot stores manage before deciding on the protocols to adopt towards a wider store opening.