We would love to hear your memories of Apple Stores from across the world, so do reach out to me on Twitter or Instagram – @nikhilchawla
1. Apple BKC, Mumbai, India
The encore of BKC, BKC, BKC is still fresh in my ears, heart, and soul. It was an ecstatic moment for us all when Tim Cook, CEO of Apple and Deirdre O’Brien, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail + People, walked out of the Apple BKC in the heart of Mumbai. Apple BKC is not just a store, it is a feeling! The first Apple store in India, Apple BKC features a triangular handcrafted timber ceiling that extends beyond the glass façade to the underside of the exterior canopy, reflecting the unique geometry of the store. Each tile is made from 408 pieces of timber, forming 31 modules per tile with a total of 1,000 tiles that make up the ceiling. There are over 450,000 individual timber elements, all of which were assembled in Delhi. Upon entering the store, customers are greeted by two stone walls sourced from Rajasthan and a 14-meter-long stainless-steel staircase connecting the ground level and the cantilevered mezzanine. Apple BKC is designed to be one of the world’s most energy-efficient Apple Store locations, with a dedicated solar array and zero reliance on fossil fuels for store operations. The store is operationally carbon neutral, running on 100 percent renewable energy.
2. Apple Fifth Avenue, New York, USA
The luminous glass Cube that teleports you from the ground up to the Apple Fifth Avenue Store is nothing less than a marvel. This iconic store opened in 2006, and Steve Jobs personally welcomed the first customers to enter the cube. Till date, it remains to be the only Apple retail location open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. So next time you want an iPhone or any other Apple product in the middle of the night or on a public holiday, you know where to go.
3. Apple Regent Street, London, USA
The luminous glass Cube that teleports you from the ground up to the Apple Fifth Avenue Store is nothing less than a marvel. This iconic store opened in 2006, and Steve Jobs personally welcomed the first customers to enter the cube. Till date, it remains to be the only Apple retail location open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. So next time you want an iPhone or any other Apple product in the middle of the night or on a public holiday, you know where to go.
4. Apple Central World, Bangkok, Thailand
Apple Central World’s distinctive architecture is brought to life with the first-ever all-glass design, housed under a cantilevered Tree Canopy roof. Once inside, customers can travel between two levels via a spiral staircase that wraps around a timber core or ride a unique cylindrical elevator clad in mirror-polished stainless steel. Guests can enter from the ground or upper level, directly connecting to the Skytrain and the city’s largest shopping centre. It opened on my birthday in 2020 on 28th July, so I shall celebrate my birthday at the Apple Central World in Bangkok very soon.
5. Apple Tower Theatre, Los Angeles, USA
Originally home to the first theatre in Los Angeles wired for film with sound, the historic Tower Theatre was designed in 1927. That legacy of technological innovation continues today as the perfect venue to discover Apple’s full line of iPhone, iPad and Mac, each of which has transformed modern-day filmmaking, photography, and music composition. Apple collaborated with leading preservationists, restoration artists, and the City of Los Angeles to thoughtfully preserve and restore the theatre’s beauty and grandeur. Every surface was carefully refinished, and the building underwent a full seismic upgrade. Apple Tower Theatre anchors the corner of Eighth Street and Broadway, where visitors will immediately recognise the fully restored clock tower, recreated Broadway marquee, clean terra cotta exterior, and renovated historic blade sign.
6. Apple Piazza Liberty, Milan, Italy
“The name of Italy has magic in its very syllables.” – Mary Shelley, English Novelist. That’s what visitors will see at the Apple Piazza Liberty store in Italy – Magic when they first see a dramatic glass fountain that serves as the entrance to the store and a backdrop to the large outdoor amphitheatre. The piazza, clad in Beola Grigia, a stone used throughout Milan, is open to the public 24 hours a day and will host special events year-round amongst 14 Gleditsia Sunburst trees planted in the area.
7. Apple Store Dubai Mall, Dubai, UAE
The Apple Store Dubai Mall is 186 foot curved double-height storefront that overlooks Dubai’s epicentre, where the Dubai Fountain, Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall meet. To mitigate Dubai’s climate, it has eighteen 37.5-foot-high motorised “Solar Wings” that respond to the ever-changing environmental conditions. When the sun is at its hottest, they cool the store, and in the evenings, they open to welcome everyone to the public terrace. Inspired by the traditional Arabic Mashrabiya, each “Solar Wing” is locally fabricated from 340 carbon fiber reinforced polymer rods, and at 180 feet wide, the 18 panels make up one of the world’s largest kinetic art installations.
8. Apple Carnegie Library, Washington D.C., USA
A true classic in every sense, it is Apple’s most extensive historic restoration project to date, restoring and revitalising the Beaux-Arts style building once home to Washington, D.C.’s Central Public Library. Originally opened in 1903, the library has once again become a centre for community learning, discovery and creativity. To restore the building to its original grandeur, Apple worked with conservation experts to carefully preserve the historic facades, return interior spaces to their original footprints, and restore distinctive early 20th-century detailing.
9. Apple Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
The Apple Marina Bay Sands is the first Apple Store to sit directly on the water. Appearing as a sphere floating on the iridescent Marina Bay, the store introduces a new and captivating retail experience at one of the most iconic locations in Singapore. Entirely surrounded by water, Apple Marina Bay Sands offers uninterrupted 360-degree panoramic views of the city and its spectacular skyline. The sphere is a first-of-its-kind, all-glass dome structure that is fully self-supported, comprised of 114 pieces of glass with only 10 narrow vertical mullions for structural connection. As Apple’s third retail location in Singapore, the new store creates an unforgettable space for customers.
10. Apple Store Union Square, San Francisco, USA
When I went to San Francisco in 2015, the Apple Store Union Square had just opened right across from my hotel, The Westin St. Francis San Francisco on Union Square. I will be honest that I spent more time at the Apple Store than at my hotel while I was in SFO. Located on San Francisco’s famous and vibrant Union Square, the building’s vast glass sliding doors allow the store to connect the existing square to a new plaza to the north, creating unprecedented urban permeability. Check it out in 3D on Apple Maps for a surprise.
11. Apple Trafford Centre, Manchester, UK
While the Apple Store in Trafford Centre is not as iconic as the other stores in this list. But for me, it is the most important store as this is where I stood all night long to get my 4 units (maximum one could buy) of Apple iPhone 4s in loving memory of the Late Steve Jobs, who had passed away just days before the launch. Also, I owe my career to the MacBook Air, I bought from the same store in 2010 and started The Unbiased Blog and my career as a content creator.