Ron Johnson, Senior Vice-President of Retail for Apple Computer, recently gave a talk about the booming success of the Apple stores all around the world. In fact, only just the other day, the millionth customer of the Apple Store at Fifth Avenue walked in (and walked out with a bag of goodies). Johnson had a couple of points about expanding their retail outlets, but the long and short of it is:

• They plan to open 40 new stores this year
• Redesign store layouts
  
• Stores would conduct special events like software tutorial classes
• Average revenue per Apple Store per week is $440,000
• Average of 10,900 visitors per Apple Store per week

These are just some of what he'd mentioned, but all in all, the question is: why are Apple Stores so successful? Johnson states that the key to their retailing success is innovation and the power of enriching the lives of others. And with regards to their plan about redesigning the stores, they are planning to pattern it after the one at Fifth Avenue.

Well, at the rate things are going, especially with regards to the Apple's design philosophy of simplicity and clean white-space, we're bound to experience more of the Apple touch in the new Apple Stores. Let's just all hope that, when these new stores pop up like mushrooms after rain, they have a "millionth customer winner" for each. That'd be fun!