History of the Fifth Avenue Apple Store

Apple has a reputation of building some of the coolest, most futuristic retail stores in the world. This location in Dubai features carbon fiber solar wings that automatically open and close to cool down the space. This store in Milan features a stunning water fountain display that welcomes visitors as they enter. And one of my favorite locations is this one in Shanghai which utilizes patented curved glass panels to achieve its unique cylindrical shape. But the most iconic Apple store in the world is in New York City on 5th Avenue. Sitting just steps away from Central Park, it's likely one of the highest traffic stores in the country. And you can get an understanding of just how important this store is to Apple by considering its history, which is exactly what we're going to cover. This is Greg with Apple Explained, and if you want to help decide which topics I cover, make sure you're subscribed and these voting polls will show up in your mobile activity feed. Now let's start off by exploring where the concept of a glass cube shaped Apple store came from in the first place. It turns out Jobs always had the idea in the back of his head, but he wasn't sure where the flagship store should be located. That is, until Jobs met with Harry Macklowe, a New York City real estate developer. Macklowe had recently purchased the most expensive office building in North America at the time, the General Motors building in Manhattan, which cost him $1.4 billion. But there was one problem with the property that discouraged many other developers from investing, and that was the plaza that sat directly in front of the building. There were a couple issues with this space. First, it was considered by most architects to be too big for a simple plaza, but too small to place another skyscraper. Second, it contained a basement that was never even used. This was due to the plaza being sunken when it was first built, but subsequently razed after the area failed to attract many pedestrians. So Macklowe had a problem on his hands. How could this awkward, aging plaza be transformed into a modern shopping area? Well, he had one company in mind that could offer a solution. And that was Apple. Because not only had they made an aggressive and successful entrance into the retail market two years earlier, but Apple's retail stores served as stylish, modern spaces which housed some of the coolest tech products in the world. So convincing Apple to build their flagship store on the GM Plaza became Macklowe's top priority. He started by contacting George Blankenship, Apple's Vice President of Real Estate, to try and set up a meeting with Jobs. He was successful, and quickly flew out to Cupertino to discuss what would become one of the most iconic retail stores in the world. Macklowe brought with him his longtime design partner Dan Shannon, and the architects from the firm Bolin Kowinski-Jackson who designed the Apple Store in Soho. This meeting is where Jobs shared his idea for the store's glass cube design, complete with a model of the GM building, Apple Store, and plaza to clearly demonstrate his vision for the space. Macklowe immediately loved the idea, especially since it made perfect use of the challenging space. Not only could a glass cube be perfectly proportioned for the plaza's size, but Apple's retail space would actually be located underground. Finally making use of the location's awkward basement area which had been empty for almost a decade. But Macklowe recognized an issue with Steve Jobs' design right away. The glass cube was simply too big. Jobs wanted a 40 foot cube which would not only obscure the GM building, but invite protest from tenants and cause zoning issues with the city. But Macklowe knew he couldn't break this news to Jobs himself, since it would likely fall on deaf ears. So instead, Macklowe helped Jobs discover this issue. He did this by constructing a scaffolding mock-up of the cube to give Apple an idea of its scale. And once their retail executives saw the mock-up in person, they agreed that it should be smaller. Now it's important to note just how involved Steve Jobs was in every step of the store's development. He helped decide what type of stone would be used for the plaza, and ordered workers to replace metal bolts holding together the glass panels. Jobs was so excited about the store, he built a mock-up of his own in the parking lot of Apple's headquarters. He was so involved in the project that he eventually developed a friendship with Macklowe, who offered Jobs an office in the GM building. But Jobs refused, saying, When I come to New York, I want to be in Soho. I want to be in Chelsea. I want to be surrounded by young people, so I can listen to what they're thinking. I want to have new ideas. On May 19, 2006, the 32-foot glass cube on 5th Avenue was unveiled to the public. It featured an illuminated white floating Apple logo and a glass staircase spiraling around a cylindrical glass elevator. Not only did this liberal use of glass make the store look good and feel more spacious, but it served a functional purpose as well. By allowing sunlight to shine directly down into the store, Apple's retail executive Ron Johnson explained the concept well, saying, The glass cube was designed to let in light and ambience throughout the day. When I'm under here canopied by the cube, I feel like I'm in a public space. And that concept is important to remember since it helped inform all of the store's subsequent updates. It's also important to point out that when Apple opened this 5th Avenue location, they'd only been in retail for five years and hadn't yet opened a flagship store. So neither Apple nor Maclo had an accurate frame of reference to predict how the store would perform. They simply had to measure the earnings of surrounding stores while drawing up a business deal. Part of that deal was deciding what percentage of their sales Apple would pay to Maclo, the property owner. And as it would turn out, Apple made out like bandits, since their 5th Avenue store performance was unprecedented. Although Apple and Maclo had high hopes, all their expectations were shattered when the numbers came in for the store's first year. It ended up attracting 50,000 visitors a day, which totaled 18.2 million people in its first year. Making the store Apple's most popular in the world at the time. But what about revenue? Because making money is what retail is all about after all. Well, the 5th Avenue Apple store alone ended up bringing in an average of $1 million each day, and that's after Apple paid rent and a percentage of the store's profits to Maclo. But it's also important to consider the store's social impacts. Not only did this transformation of the GM building make the property look more appealing and drive higher foot traffic, but it also attracted more high-end luxury stores, looking to replicate the kind of success Apple had. So the 5th Avenue Apple store wasn't only a wild success for Apple, but also the property owner and the neighborhood that surrounded it. But the truth is, this was only the beginning. Since Apple would revamp their 5th Avenue store multiple times in the following years. The first update came in 2011 when Apple spent $6.6 million to rebuild the glass cube using just 15 panels of glass instead of 90. But that was seemingly insignificant compared to the major renovations Apple began making to the store six years later in 2017. This time, they actually opened a temporary location for the 5th Avenue store just steps away from the original. And that was in large part due to great timing. The FAO Schwartz toy store located in the GM building behind the Apple store actually vacated the property due to high rent just in time for Apple's renovation project. So Apple was able to simply buy the location and continue offering their products and services without much disruption to customers. And this was important, since the 2017 5th Avenue project was much more involved and complex than in 2011. No one knew at the time what Apple had in store for the location, they didn't even reveal how long the project would last. But it turned out that the 5th Avenue renovation would take over two years to finally complete. And it was time well spent, because the improvements made to the store were absolutely stunning. I actually went on a road trip with my younger brother to see the store for myself the day it opened, and it was really an unforgettable experience. Not only was Tim Cook and Deirdre O'Brien there to commemorate the occasion, but people from across the world stopped by to see the store in person. But first let's talk about what makes this remodeled store so special. As I mentioned earlier in the video, Apple's always wanted the store to feel open, spacious, and bright. Which is especially important since the store is underground. And they were able to achieve this in a few ways. First, there are portholes in the ceiling that not only let in much more natural light than before, but features integrated LED lights that automatically shift their color temperature to match the natural light. That way cooler light from outside won't clash with warmer artificial light. But what's even better are what the portholes look like outside the store. They carpet the plaza and give it a futuristic glow, while also doubling as chrome benches for people to sit and perhaps even peek inside. And instead of stairs and an elevator made of glass, Apple instead opted for chrome. Which I was told helps reflect the greenery, which there's quite a bit of. Not only are there trees in the middle of the store, but there are also these walls of greenery around the perimeter where visitors can sit and charge their devices. But something I found very interesting was the addition of this HomePod room. Which gave people a chance to experience its stereo sound feature, which I admit was quite impressive. Another cool touch were the photos that lined the hallway to the back room and bathrooms. They featured the old store, the construction process, and the new store. It's also worth noting that the remodeled 5th Avenue location is twice as big and has higher ceilings, which is important since the number of visitors to this location has only been growing. So the 5th Avenue Apple Store continues to be one of the company's most impressive locations, and I highly encourage anyone in the area to visit and check it out for themselves. Alright guys thanks for watching and I'll see you next time.