[psmith2.0]

I believe this is a Nashville-based outfit, with two Nashville locations and one in Kentucky.

I visited the Nashville location years ago (pre-"iEra") when I lived there in '97-98. But they're already accepting resumes for various positions here at the upcoming location. I'm sending mine in, of course.

Probably the closest thing Chattanooga will ever get to a real Apple store. But it's going to be in a our main, big (and high-traffic) mall, Hamilton Place. And it's a Mac-only joint, so that'll be good enough.

It's funny how when it rains it pours. For years, this town had no Mac resellers. Sure, you could buy an iPod at Best Buy or Target, but that was about it. Within the past 18 months, however, we've had Macs arrive at the main, big Best Buy store (we have two), a second store, just down the street from Best Buy, called Computers Plus. And now here comes a full-tilt, Mac-only store, going into the mall.

This has all happened since March 2008, and these stores are all within a mile from one another, in a little triangle (two are on the same street, about three blocks apart, and the mall is on the other side of that street, smack-dab between Best Buy and Computers Plus.

The Gateway Store that was on that same street a few years ago has been torn down and is now housing a Starbucks, BTW...



But that's great...one more place in town to see and buy Macs and Apple accessories (and one more reason I don't have to schlep all the way to Atlanta or Knoxville to "get my iFix").



Anyone know anything about this company or chain? Any experiences with them? My one visit was so long ago (pre-Jobs, pre-iMac/iPod, etc.) that I don't even remember much at all...I bought a cable and a magazine).

*shrug*

[curiousuburb]

Oooh Oooh, do the staff get these?

[psmith2.0]

I hope.

[Robo]

Yay! I know that it bummed you out, not having an Apple Store. You would always talk about how Chattanooga would never get anything. That's why whenever I see, say, something like this:



I think of you. It's like, all the routes make a ring around Tennessee, but nope. None are going to ever cross it, ever.

But seriously, I'm sure you will like it. My hometown has an independent Mac store in one of our malls, too. They're just called "The Mac Store," and everybody thinks they're an official Apple Store (quite a complement, that!) but they aren't. They do a great job, though, of staying true to the clean design of the products they sell without ripping off the Apple Store aesthetic. They have a warmer, more Pacific Northwest vibe. I can only hope you're so lucky, with your indie Mac store.

[Luca]

Originally Posted by Roboman Yay! I know that it bummed you out, not having an Apple Store. You would always talk about how Chattanooga would never get anything. That's why whenever I see, say, something like this: I think of you. It's like, all the routes make a ring around Tennessee, but nope. None are going to ever cross it, ever.

But they have the Chattanooga Choo-Choo!

[mladd]

Do we know when it will be open, and possibly where in the mall? Will it be a full retail store, or one of those kiosks in the middle (like Dell had there).

[psmith2.0]

Ohmigosh, is there another Chattanoogan here at 'Nova?



Funny you should ask, because I was just at the mall for the first time in months last Thursday evening. And I just happened to walk into the entrance where the store is being built (I honestly had no idea...I was heading to get a steak sandwich at the food court and then visit Barnes & Noble, so I just happened to park right outside this entrance). After I ate and browsed B&N, I was going to walk around and try to find it. As it turns out, I saw it the minute I walked in the doors!

It's immediately inside, on the right, of the main Food Court entrance at Hamilton Place Mall (there's a Barnes & Noble on the left side). You walk in and there's a huge black wall currently in place, with a "coming November 2009" sign/Mac Authority logo in place.

So it's going to be a full-on, standalone store (not a kiosk in the middle of the mall). You can't see any construction taking place, but it's a good size store front (not one of those dinky, thin store fronts like some of the smaller, specialty stores). Seems to be at least a 20-30' opening.

So it's coming:

Here you go...store/space 318, lower level.

You can see it at the top of this map, 318...literally the first store you hit as you come inside:



That's actually kinda cool, because those are the only two stores I'm interested in at the mall, and they're right across from each other. Barnes & Noble, until about six months ago, used to be in a retail strip across the parking lot from the mall itself. Then they shut it down and transferred it over to the mall itself, so it's quite new and clean and seems more spacious, with a better layout than they had before. IMO.

[mladd]

Yup, another Chattanoogan. Well, Ooltewahan, I guess :-)

I know the space, that used to be the Mexican Restaurant. Interesting spot. It would be nice if maybe they kept the outdoor seating that used to be there, and add a small coffee shop there. Great location there for that, and there should be plenty of room.

[psmith2.0]

Well, it opens tomorrow at 10am!

Goober that I am, I'll probably be there to check it out (cuts into my Saturday morning HGTV viewing...the only 3-4 shows remaining on the network that aren't endless real estate/property and "whiny, brainless couples buy their very first home and demand everything right out of the gate" programming*).

If I'm among the first 200 I'll get a free T-shirt.

HGTV used to be so awesome. It sucks a load of Ebola-encrusted bear traps now. Except for about two hours on Saturday morning.

[Robo]

I know that a few days ago a new user registered on AN named...macauthorityCHA. Related? I think so!

[psmith2.0]

I think they registered to PM me a notice about it.

I PM'ed back, asking for a job.

[psmith2.0]

Was there at the grand opening (among the first 50-75 folks in the door, with tons more following behind me), browsed around and got the T-shirt.



I'll say this...Chattanooga doesn't need an official Apple Store now. I was extremely impressed by the layout, design, stock, etc. at this store. There's no reason for anyone in Chattanooga to fool with Best Buy or ComputersPlus for their Mac needs. This is as close to an official Apple Store as you could ever get (and, in some ways, even better...if they don't stock it, you don't need it).

Everything...musical gear, third-party cases and accessories from all the big names (Griffin and all the rest), cables, software, utilities, wireless gear, music/iPod gizmos, iPod and iPhone cases out the wazoo, printers, hard drives and on and on.

And, unlike Best Buy, these guys stock everything from Apple...Best Buy doesn't stock/sell (in the store) the displays, Mac minis or Mac Pro towers. These guys do, and they were all present and on display, connected online, etc. Including the 30" display. They had a 15" MacBook Pro connected to a 24" LED Cinema Display. They had a little kid's table with two iMacs. They've got the new 21.5" and 27" iMacs on display and in boxes for sale. Same with the MacBooks.

$10 off on the Magic Mouse, 13" white MacBook for $799 today.

The staff (quite a few of them too) were all dressed in black bowling type shirts (short-sleeved button shirts, untucked, with the MacAuthority logo on the left chest) seemed to know their stuff from the few I talked with and conversations I overheard. Actual Mac users.

Apple finally has a big, proper presence in Chattanooga! A nice, enthusiastic turnout and, as I was leaving, more and more people were streaming in. And I saw folks walking by, obviously not headed to this store, but - upon seeing the crowds and activity - came on inside and browsed. So with a true, dedicated Mac store at the main foodcourt entrance (with Barnes & Noble directly across the way), the traffic through this area will be huge. I'm betting a lot of non-Mac users, made curious by all the commercials and the presence of Apple in the business/financial news, will be stopping to take a look. And who knows...maybe even some of them will wind up getting a Mac at some point? This certainly can't hurt Apple, having it done right like this.

Aside from the decor, this is, by all accounts, a full-on Apple Store...every Mac present and represented, all machines online and ready for use/demo, accessories and add-ons everywhere, etc. Their selection and set-up is every bit as complete and well-rounded as any of the Apple Stores I've visited in SoCal, Atlanta or Knoxville.

And it has an outside entrance (see first pic in gallery below), which is nice. Only a few steps away, but you don't even have to enter the mall entry if you don't want to.

All the cash register controls are aluminum MacBooks mounted on swivel arms, so that's cool. Nice tile floor, big LCD TVs everywhere, playing looped ads or current "grand opening" specials or notices.

This is where I'll send my Mom, Dad and anyone else. Best Buy saved me from having to schlep to Atlanta or Knoxville. This place now saves me from having to go to Best Buy. This is the only place I'll go from now on, for my Mac/Apple needs. I hope it stays around for a long, long time.



And here's an 18-picture gallery of shots I snapped on my iPhone during my visit.

[PB PM]

Looks like a good store, kind of like the local one that I buy my Macs from rather than going into down town Vancouver to the official Apple Store.

[wtd]

Originally Posted by PB PM Looks like a good store, kind of like the local one that I buy my Macs from rather than going into down town Vancouver to the official Apple Store.

MacStation, or Simply?

[Robo]

That's so cool, Pscates. It reminds me of my local indie Mac store (called simply, The Mac Store) but it looks even bigger.

The arm-mounted MacBook registers are interesting. I always thought that if I ever opened a little shop I would use an iMac for the register, maybe with one of those Troll Touch touchscreen layers, because it would be unobtrusive (and not ugly from the back, like a Dell monitor!) but a notebook, now there's an idea...the new iMac screens are actually so big that I'd almost worry about them getting in the way, between me and the customers. But if they brought back the iMac G4 design...that'd be *perfect.*

The only problem with using a MacBook as a POS system is...no numeric keypad. I never used it, but lots of people do. But I think if you had a full keyboard in the back for doing inventory everybody would be happy (up front, ideally you'll just be scanning barcodes all the time, anyway).

And another MacBooks for $799 deal! Wow.

[PB PM]

Originally Posted by wtd MacStation, or Simply?

Simply.

[psmith2.0]

Yeah, everything seems so clean and controlled, I have to believe that every item in the store is scanned/tagged and things are simply scanned and tallied automatically. I doubt there's much need for number entry on those things. Not on any ongoing, consistent basis, anyway.

It seemed quite a tight little set-up there. I hope it grows and thrives. Opening it now - during the height of Applemania and immediately before the holiday shopping season - gives them a great starting point.

I hope, a year from now, it's just as busy and vibrant. They couldn't have picked a better location...directly inside one of the main mall entrances, the entrance where the food court is and pulling from all the Barnes & Noble traffic too. Someone can buy a Mac, then walk 30 feet across the way and get an iMovie or OS X book (although they sell those at MacAuthority too).



They could've put this in a much worse spot, sandwiched in between a bunch of stores nobody cares about or notices, at the ass-end of the mall where nothing happens (and no convenient outside entrace). That would've doomed it, for sure. But putting it here, at the Food Court/Barnes & Noble/Red Robin entrance (Red Robin is store #317 in the map above) guarantees heavy, constant traffic and bodies walking by. And it's super-convenient for people (me) who just want to come to this store and not have to travel halfway through the mall to reach our destination. Going here is no different, or more inconvenient, than going to a Target or Best Buy...it's right there, accessible as can be from the parking lot.

And they've got the windows fitted with stacked MacBook and iMac boxes, and unboxed units on display. It couldn't be more enticing to someone strolling by!

They've done everything right on the location front. I can't think of a better spot...everyone comes through that entrance.

[addabox]

Slightly OT, and perhaps discussed elsewhere/when, but I have a question for Mr. 'Scates:

Having grown up in Huntsville, AL, I used to go to Chattanooga pretty regularly, several hundred years ago. I had a girl friend in high school who's grandmother lived there. Aside from seeing Rock City and Ruby Falls and riding the Incline Train and, um, I guess, eating at the Chattanooga Choo Choo, it seemed like a pretty dead place. Like, used to be kinda a city, but was sinking into some kind of terminal gray coma.

But then! Over the last, what is it, 15 years or so? They seem to have gone berserk. That whole art gallery/aquarium/not sure what else rethink of downtown, it was kinda WTF? Since when does Chattanooga have the wherewith-all to do shit? Especially large scale expensive shit.

So what up with that? Is it more than skin deep? Is Chattanooga reinventing itself into one of those stealth great places to live, like Pittsburgh? Or did they just blow the wad on some high profile development and a river walk (I'm just assuming there's a river walk, there's always a river walk) and it's lipstick on a pig?

[psmith2.0]

I'm not 100% on everything, but much of the manufacturing has gone (those old plants and factories near downtown, and by the river (Whelan Foundry, Combustion Industries, etc.) are no more. We recently got the new VW plant, but I think the powers-that-be have put a lot of stock into a tourist income/angle in recent years, with high-end riverfront developments, new ballpark for our minor league Lookouts, refurbished downtown area, some new riverfront parks and recreation areas, bridge repairs, the aquarium and IMAX, etc.

All that, combined with our rivers, lakes, mountains, Civil War history, four distinct seasons, and historic connections to Coca-Cola and Moon Pies ( ) all add up to a certain type of city for a certain type of traveler (outdoorsy types, history buffs, people who like fish, etc.).

[addabox]

I would think the historic MoonPie connection alone would be worth a fair amount of your tourist dollar. Ya'll could do it up like the Jack Daniel's deal in Lynchburg-- visitor center, tours, pausing to sample the raw moonstuff from giant vats, big 'ole MoonPie trinket and accessory retail area... I'm sure there are many colorful anecdotes about the outrageous antics of the founders that tour guides could regale the visitors with. Like that time they killed a rival baker and cooked him down for syrup, or stories of that nature.

I don't guess the MoonPie manufacturing facility has quite the rustic charm of the wooded Jack's encampment, maybe something could be done about that. Involving animatronic hillbillies, I would hope.

What's the job market like around there? Much in the way of an arts scene?

[Satchmo]

It's certainly very Apple-esque in design and layout.

I don't know what the penetration of Apple retail stores are like across the U.S., but if there are pockets that aren't served, this looks like a great opportunity for the Apple Authority (or any independent dealer for that matter), to catch a ride on the Apple tsunami.

That said, I'm curious as to how much it would have cost to start up a store like this. What are the margins like for Apple dealers? I'm sure they did their due diligence and marketing before they went ahead with it. But, what happens if Apple opens a retail store of their own in the same neighbourhood?

[addabox]

The typography of their name is kinda heinous, however. Like, quaint little System 7 Mac being brusquely shoved aside by big bad Authority. Looks like you're supposed to say it by starting to make the "ma" noise and then screaming AUTHORITY! at the top of your lungs. WE SELL MACS BUT WE ARE NOT PUSSIES!

[wtd]

Originally Posted by Satchmo What are the margins like for Apple dealers? I'm sure they did their due diligence and marketing before they went ahead with it.

The margins on the Macs themselves, if my experience at a Canadian Mac reseller applies, are terrible. But that's true of any computer resale business. The phrase "make it up in volume" comes into play, though. Compare average Mac prices and average Windows PC prices. You can gross a lot more selling Macs.

My experience also tells me that shoppers looking for Macs are a heck of a lot more receptive to high margin add-on sales, probably in large part because they're financially secure enough to be shelling out more for the computer to start with.

Originally Posted by Satchmo But, what happens if Apple opens a retail store of their own in the same neighbourhood?

It stings a bit, especially when the economy turns sour, sales slump and you have to cut back hours. It does negatively impact customer service, which has a detrimental impact on your reputation. In the same situation, Apple just draws on their huge pile of cash, keeps the customer service up and powers through the slump.

That said, it's not all bad. Apple stores are frequently on friendly terms with third party Apple resellers. They exist to sell stuff, but also to promote the Mac platform in general, so if they are unable to provide a product or service, they will gladly send a customer to a 3rd party dealer who can.

While I have almost always had positive experiences with Apple Store staff, they hire a lot of people, and that increases the odds of getting a dud or two. A small Apple reseller with staff that really know their Macs can compete. We had one incident where a customer went to the Apple Store looking for a Firewire 400 -> 800 adapter and was told no such thing existed or could exist. They mentioned this to us and we were able to get them the adapter within 30 seconds.

At the same time, the smaller staff can also be helpful as many customers like maintaining relationships with certain salespeople, which is easier to do at a smaller shop.

[Chinney]

I didn't post about it at the time, but after years of me complaining about the lack of a solid Apple presence in the Ottawa retail marketplace we did get our own Apple store this past July. I was not there at the opening (I was out of town at the time, actually), and somehow have not managed to visit it since then. Today I went. I was impressed - very impressed actually. A few random thoughts:

• The square footage of the space is huge. Oversized, even, but in a good way. It does not have that empty, pointless feeling of some plus-sized retail stores, where you have useless repetitive displays of exactly the same product. (Why do you need 5 rows of three shelves all displaying exactly the same recently-released DVD film?) Sure, there were many iMacs, Minis, MacBooks, Touches, other iPods, etc. all set up side-by-side, but it was appropriately spaced, and the multiple-set up allowed many people to comfortably test them out all at the same time.
  
  
• The layout and overall appearance is clean, crisp and appealing, like other Apple stores I have seen in photos. (This was my first personal visit to an Apple store anywhere.)
  
  
• The staff was super-friendly, well organized, and (fairly) knowledgeable. From my own enquiries and from what I overheard from their interactions with other customers, some of the staff were not quite as knowledgeable as the staff at the hole-in-the-wall, ramshackle, tiny, dedicated Apple reseller that I have visited here in Ottawa for years. Some of the Apple store staff gave the "just been through the training course" vibe, rather than that of hard-core, long-time Apple enthusiasts. But even here, they admitted what they did not know and found a way to get the info quickly from another source. And they were extremely courteous, despite being under some pressure from the sheer number of customers (see further comment below).
  
  
• They seemed to have lots of stock. At the dedicated reseller and at all non-dedicated retailers I visited in Ottawa, the answer usually was "I could order that for you". Sure, but I could order it myself. Sometimes, to make the sale you have to have the stock, because people want to walk out of the store with their purchase. Also, lots of software (Apple and third-party) was available, which has been hard to find anywhere in Ottawa.
  
  
• The place was very, very busy (good thing that it is huge). I visited at the end of lunch hour and beyond, and the place was packed. This is months after opening, mid-week, and not immediately after any big Apple release. And people were buying, not just checking things out. Based on what I saw, Apple is going to have a big year in Ottawa, after years of being almost invisible in the local market. Opening retail stores has been a smart move by Apple. Apple's design ethos means that their products display well - generally more so than those of other manufacturers. Visual effect and the hands-on experience can be important in making a sale.

The only negative side of the experience was trying to use a couple of iMac display models that were just not working. One was behaving very, very strangely and slowly. I tried to do some basic stuff on it, but just could not get it to operate properly. I moved off of it and was just about to use another one when I snagged a sales rep and asked him a question. He said, "oh I'll show you" and started in on the machine that I was about to use. After a couple of minutes of frustration he smiled sheepishly and said "this one is not working", and took me to a third machine (which did work). I tried several other machines that worked just fine - and I have enough years of experience with Macs not to believe that those two machines represented standard Apple computer behaviour. But for somebody with less experience, encountering two display models in a row that did not work would not have been impressive. I suppose, however, that with so many people playing around with them, it may be difficult to keep display models at their best.

Anyhow, a very positive experience overall. I will be back. Here is a link with some photos (that do not quite do the store justice), from opening day: http://www.electronista.com/articles...ideau.opening/