AppleInsider Staff
Well known Apple product purveyor Simply Mac is shuttering brick-and-mortar stores across the U.S., with conflicting reports claiming the move is either the result of corporate restructuring or a decision by Apple to end its nationwide sales agreement with the firm.
According to a statement from West Acres Mall in Fargo, N.D., Simply Mac is closing multiple locations across the country because Apple recently ended its distribution deal with the Premiere Partner, reports West Valley News. Without a deal in place, Simply Mac can no longer continue operations, the statement reads.
Simply Mac, which calls itself "the greatest Apple partner in North America," refuted the report on Twitter. A representative for the GameStop subsidiary said it has not, in fact, lost its deal with Apple.
Still, outlets in other states are apparently closing up shop. The Billings Gazette reported a Simply Mac location in Montana was shuttered Wednesday, oddly confirmed by former employees loitering outside the store today. Other recent closures include outlets in Illinois and North Carolina and Texas, among other states.
According to a statement sent to the publication, GameStop "continues to focus on the execution of our business transformation plan, which includes growing our non-gaming businesses and right-sizing our global store portfolio across all our retail brands. This involves evaluating and closing non-productive locations. The closure of this Simply Mac store is part of that strategy." GameStop recently reported dismal financials, with sales dropping 16.4 percent over the holiday quarter.
A separate report from local Texas publication the Midland Reporter-Telegram notes a Simply Mac mall location there will close its doors on Sunday. Employees at the store were notified of the impending closure earlier this week.
The development comes six months after another high profile Apple Authorized Reseller, Tekserve, shuttered its longstanding Manhattan shop after 29 years of service.
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11 Comments
Meanwhile, here in the Philippines there's a great Apple reseller called iStore. The stores exclusively sell all things Apple, the entirety of the main product lines and plenty of accessories. There are, I think, just eight in the country, each looking like an actual Apple Store with curved glass walls and clean product tables/presentation.
http://www.istore.ph/iStore_Web/Home.html
A pic of store
Hello,
In Europe, Apple adopted another strategy to kill the local existing Apple reseller channel.
While opening Apple stores in major countries, Apple simply drasticaly reduced its deliveries to regular partner, forcing them to bankrupt.
In France (Ebizcuss - http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/06/25/ebizcuss_french_apple_reseller),or in Nethelands icentre http://www.macg.co/2013/06/un-réseau-de-34-apple-premium-resellers-en-faillite-aux-pays-bas-71367
So if your read between the lines one might guess that Apple is'just killing some US partners to gain more marketshare sold direcly by the brand, it brings more margin and control on the sales process
"corporate restructuring"