Apple Inc. is one of the biggest and smartest tech-companies ever built. Whether you love Apple or hate them, or like most of my friends (including I) having a love/hate relationship with the fruit-named company. I do admit, I admire their originality and marketing strategies. They always knew what people wanted before we asked (or even knew), always causing ripples throughout the tech world.
2007 is one for the books. When Steve Jobs first showcased the iPhone there was major excitement but also a fair bit of skepticism. An all touchscreen phone with only four buttons (now 3 on the iPhone X). How are we supposed to text? Are you sure an all-touchscreen keyboard will perform just as fast as Blackberry’s hardware keyboard? Zoom 11 years, 18 iPhone releases later and there is no other phone I would rather trust.
Apple Store in Milano Opening
Coming June 26th, Apple is hosting their 17th Apple Store grand-opening in Italy. Nearly 500 stores worldwide. Specific location: on Piazza Liberty in Milan. Well, I should technically say under Piazza Liberty if we’re getting all technical. Since it’s really a store that’s going to be underground, right under Apple’s new amphitheater/glass screen waterfall display.
The Apple store in Milano, Italy will be the new flagship store, a first of its kind offering unique architecture by Foster + Partners. Whose designed a few other Apple spaces before like the Paris Apple Store and Campus 2 HQs Building. Milan’s flagship store leaves New York City’s Apple store glass architecture in the dust and what other perfect location than in the world’s pioneer of modern design.
The Apple store in Milano center is hoping to create more than a store for you to go to when something goes wrong with your Mac or iPhone. They wanted and I believe they will successfully create a space for you to go to when on break, to meet friends, to get inspiration. This grand opening was well worth the wait, even though they delayed the grand opening, twice! It was originally set to open in December 2017 and then it was moved to February 2018. Fingers-crossed, it looks like its ready to be unveiled this month on the 26th.
In honor of the Apple Store in Milano, Italy. Here are some fun facts about the company:
- Steve Jobs picked the name ‘Apple’. For the only reason that apples were his favorite fruit.
- Everyone knows Steve Jobs as one of the main co-founders of the company and a few have heard of Steve Wozniak, the second co-founder. What most people don’t know is that there was a third co-founder, Ronald Wayne. Unfortunately, Wayne sold his 10% share of the company for $800 in 1976 (when Apple was 12 days old).
- Can we ponder on this: if Wayne still owned his 10% of the company he would be a billionaire today. Read his Essay on why Wayne left.
- Apple’s revenue is bigger than over 100 country’s GDP.
- Steve Jobs last 15 years as the company’s CEO was paid an annual salary of $1. So he can qualify for the company’s health benefits. Despite that, he already was worth about $7 billion.
- In Apple’s infancy, Jobs and Wozniak had serious cash problems. In order to buy the parts for their Apple I computer, Jobs had to sell his car and Wozniak sold his pocket-calculator (HP-65 programmable calculator, which got him $500). I can see why Ronald Wayne wanted to leave Apple at the time.
- Apple has more than $260 billion in cash, its safe to say no one will have to sell their car or calculator.
- iPod’s name was inspired by the movie 2001: A Space Odessy
- Apple is hoping to become the first company to hit $1 trillion dollars in value. (As of 2018: they’re worth about $945 billion)
- The creator of iPod, Tony Fadell. Offered the idea to Real Networks and Phillips, both companies turned him down.
- Despite their many successes, they also had plenty of failures. Like the Apple Lisa, Newton PDA, and the monitorless computer: Cube. All of them under the leadership of Jobs.
It has been a long journey for Apple and every year they seem to awe us with new technology. From having an all screen phone, to adding one of the first smart AIs to a phone (Siri), to now having face recognition. Who knows what their next play is? But it is safe to say they will definitely impress us.
Location: Piazza del Liberty, 1 – 20121 Milan
Contact: infopiazzaliberty@apple.com
Ciao!
