A first look at the London flagship Apple Store's airy new makeover
LONDON — Apple's UK flagship store is back after being closed for renovation — and it's had more than just a lick of paint.
Mashable got a first look at the redesigned new shop on Regent Street. With its huge windows and smart bulbs, the design of the store makes the most of natural light — a much appreciated feature in grey and rainy London.
Apple head designer Jonathan Ive teamed up with architects Foster + Partners for the redesign. In a presentation to the media, Senior Vice President of Retail Angela Ahrendts explained that the company wanted to maintain the historic nature of the building. The store's location is near Oxford Circus, one of the busiest shopping areas in the world, and is always crowded.
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To bring a bit of nature inside the store, Apple introduced 12 ficus alii trees, and two "living walls." The staff were keen to point out that the plants on the living walls were watered with a snake-like pipe that winds behind them, providing the appropriate amount of water for each plant.
The living wall is also 2 degrees C cooler than the rest of the store — handy if you get overheated and need a little break after looking at the post-Brexit iPhone prices.
One aspect of the redesign that we found surprising was that the phones are all "untethered" — meaning that customers can pick them up, see how they fit in their pockets and try them out with different coloured cases. Apparently they have a feature where the phone will light up and make noise if taken off premises, and then Apple can immobilise it.
Apple has added a new position to its stores. "Creative Pros" will be on hand to offer their expertise in photography, music and design. "Today at Apple" schedules workshops and programs. It's part of Apple's push around becoming a "town centre," and follows on from the redesign in San Francisco's Union Square.
All in all, it's a far cry from the basement the entire store was crammed into during the redesign process. (Before it was shut entirely!) With its prime location, the store really can't lose, but the redesign should also make it a more attractive place to spend some time in.
The store reopens to the public on Saturday, Oct. 15.
Topics Apple
Liza Hearon was the Deputy Editor for Mashable UK. Liza started her career in journalism writing about punk bands for a 'zine in Florida, and her wanderlust has led her to work for news organisations in Russia, Japan and now London. Prior to joining Mashable, she was the European homepage editor for the Wall Street Journal. Liza loves podcasts, karaoke and really, really spicy food.
