The first retail store of Apple in Hong Kong is scheduled to open later this month, inside the International Finance Center (IFC) on September 24. The IFC is a four-storey waterfront commercial center in the city’s Central District with more than 200 stores operating within.
Banners advertising the grand opening of the store can be seen outside the mall, stating “Apple Store, ifc mall. The new Center of Central.”
The store’s construction began in June, with the mall promising to open the store in the fourth quarter of 2011. Reports say that Apple initially planned to spend more than $20 million on the store’s construction alone.
The two-storey Apple retail store is expected to serve an average 40,000 walk-in customers daily. Apple is also said to hire over 300 employees that will occupy the retail store once it opens, making it one massive Apple Store.
If this store was not enough, Apple apparently plans on opening a second Apple store in Hong Kong in 2012. It was reported that the second Apple store will be 20,000 square feet and will be located at Hysan Place in Causeway Bay.
The presence of the company in Hong Kong will help eliminate the booming grey market for Apple products in the city. Apple devices like iPhones and iPads are brought into the city and are sold at higher prices, as its authorized resellers run out of stock.
The new Hong Kong store will be open just in time for the release of the iPhone 5, which is rumored to be launched in the United States in October.
via: Sacramento Bee
