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Fresh Apples in Sanlitun

Pedestrians had to fight their way through a large crowd in the Sanlitun area on August 18. While first impressions suggested another Olympic ticket scrum, in fact these were early birds setting up camp for the opening of China’s first Apple Store on August 19. Some even brought their own tents; others took a number to make sure they would be among the first through the door.

Hundreds of Apple fans were lining up by the time the store finally opened at 10 a.m. the following day. The first in line, a fashionable young man in his 20s, strode into the store like a hero after waiting for 22 hours, raising his hands in a victory salute and hugging staff.

Besides selling Apple’s iPod and iMac products, the two-floor store also features a one-to-one training service and a “Genius Bar,” which provides technical support and advice to customers. In short, it is like every other Apple store in the world.

Ron Johnson, Apple’s senior vice-president of retail, said the choice of Sanlitun rather than the electronics cluster of Zhongguancun complies with Apple’s practice of locating its stores in shopping, partying or residential areas.

While the Chinese market has seemed a relatively low priority for Apple in the past, the company is now stepping up its expansion in the world’s second largest computer market, whose buying power has increased in recent years thanks to the prosperous Chinese economy. The challenge now is to convince Chinese consumers that Apple is worth the money.

"We didn't wait long [to come to China],” Johnson told the Asian Wall Street Journal. "Every year, we've launched in a new country. You're not going to find another retailer on the planet who has been that aggressive at rolling out stores."

Although popular among China’s tech-savvy youngsters in first-tier cities, Apple’s performance in China lags far behind its strong growth in the United States. However, with sales volume in China at less than 1 percent of the total Chinese market, there is great potential for development.

In recent years, outlets selling Apple products have become increasingly visible in electronic product malls in Zhongguancun and other major commercial centres in Beijing. Unlike many other PC brands that cater to customers with different budgets, Apple seems determined to focus on a high-end niche market using a fashionable and aspirational brand image that has nurtured a large group of fans. Even before the official release of the iPhone, many consumers had already managed to buy one and make it compatible with China.

Between the fourth quarters of 2006 and 2007, Apple's personal-computer sales in China more than doubled from 8,500 to 22,000 units.

Before the opening of the Apple Store, Apple products were only available to Chinese consumers through four general agents: Highly Information Industry Company Limited and Changhong IT Company Limited deal in the iPod product line, while ECS Technology (China) Limited and Founderit deal in iMac products.

Ron Johnson said the opening of the store would not affect the dealers’ business, emphasizing that the store would be an interactive place for consumers to experience and learn about Apple products, which would help to nurture the market overall. In that sense, it doesn’t matter to Apple where people buy their products.

Apple plans to open another store in Beijing in the renovated Qianmen Dajie in 2009 and is also looking to enter Shanghai.

苹果——智慧与科技的象征

文/薛京晶

苹果形象的延伸

苹果在希腊神话中是智慧的象征，当初亚当和夏娃就是吃了苹果才变得有思想，现在引申为科技的未知领域。苹果公司的标志是咬了一口的苹果，表明了他们勇于向科学进军，探索未知领域的理想。

几乎每一本关于标识、品牌的书都会写到苹果电脑的商标形象。最初的徽标是科学家牛顿坐在苹果树下读书的图案，上下有飘带缠绕，写着Apple Computer Co.字样（当时还没有上市，所以用Co.而不是现在的Inc.），外框上则使用了英国诗人William  Wordsworth的短诗。不过这个牛顿徽标只用了很短的时间，创始人乔布斯嫌它过于复杂，不易复制传播，于是就有了今天的这个被咬掉一口的苹果图案。很多见到苹果徽标的人都会禁不住问：为什么苹果被咬了一口？这或许恰恰正是当初设计苹果徽标的人所希望达到的效果。熟悉苹果背景的人将它解释为代表了活力和朝气，可以引起好奇和疑问，还有说法认为是由于英文的咬字（bite）与计算机的基本运算单位字节（Byte）同音。

2003年，苹果进行了标识更换，将原有的彩色苹果换成了一个半透明的、泛着金属光泽的银灰色LOGO。新的标识显得更为立体、时尚和酷，更附和苹果旗下的两个具有重要影响力的产品itunes和iPod年轻一代消费者的审美和创新的感觉。

中国策略——人气第一，销量第二

2008年7月19日，苹果在中国的第一家店——三里屯零售店正式营业，这是苹果自2001年在世界范围内开设零售店业务后，第一次踏入中国市场。

“虽然苹果在中国的销售额不到其全球市场的1%，但可以肯定的是，中国是成长最快的市场。”苹果零售业务高级副总裁Ron Johnson解释说，“现在是苹果开展零售店业务的第7年，我们目前考虑的不单是销量，还要考虑销售潜力，中国就是这样一个潜力巨大的市场”。

苹果三里屯零售店提供全系列的Mac和iPod产品，全部由苹果总部直营。Ron Johnson强调，苹果零售店将整体拉动中国的销量。“零售店能够让消费者体验、试用苹果产品。但我们并不在意消费者在哪里购买苹果产品。”

在苹果零售店进驻中国之前，消费者只能通过苹果授权经销商购买苹果的产品。

目前，苹果在中国共有4家代理企业，并在产品种类上有所不同。翰林汇信息产业股份有限公司和四川长虹佳华信息产品有限责任公司代理iPod产品，佳杰科技（上海）有限公司和北京方正世纪信息系统有限公司代理Mac产品。

上述经销商都表示，对于苹果零售店的分流并不担心，“苹果在中国的市场还处在普及阶段，苹果产品与其它消费电子不同，更注重功能和应用，苹果零售店能够起到很好的展示作用。”

“我们并不在意别人怎样定价，苹果零售店每天都在更新价格，所以每天都是购买苹果产品的最好时机。”Ron Johnson说。

复制“苹果风格”

“苹果在北京找到了合适的零售店地址。”RonJohnson说，“苹果零售店坚持跟着满意的零售店选址走的原则。”这也就是选址的原因。

自从2001年5月全球首家零售店开业以来，如今苹果已经在7个国家经营219家零售店，包括美国、英国、日本、加拿大、意大利、澳大利亚和中国。

苹果三里屯零售店并不是苹果最大的零售店，却是极具特色的，正如苹果的产品一经出炉备受瞩目一样。

“我们在全球为消费者提供同等优质的服务，但是店面风格则根据当地环境设计，我们对三里屯店的现代化设计非常满意。”RonJohnson说，“这非常符合苹果一贯选择在人们购物、聚会或居住密集的地点作为零售店地点的选址因素。”另外，苹果中国第二家零售店也将于2008年内落户北京前门大街，店面设计配合前门大街特有的中国建筑特色。