Roger Fingas
Former JC Penney CEO and one-time Apple retail head Ron Johnson on Wednesday launched a new company, Enjoy Technology, that will not only sell products like smartphones, drones, notebooks, and tablets, but also offer free personal delivery and setup for orders.
The company is Web-based, and currently only serving parts of the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City, the latter starting on May 13. It's also limited to a few dozen different devices, such as the GoPro Hero4, the DJI Phantom 3, various Sonos speakers, and Microsoft's Xbox One and Surface Pro 3.
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Johnson said that Enjoy will only sell electronics costing $200 or more, in some cases with optional accessories.
He added that while some websites may have lower prices, Enjoy is unique in including free setup sessions, which last up to an hour. People can also have an expert come out to help with a product they already own at a cost of $99 per visit.
Beginning May 19th, Enjoy will offer phones resold by AT&T, including the iPhone. Shoppers on AT&T's website will have the option of regular delivery or having an Enjoy expert come out at no extra cost. Enjoy, though, will get a cut of AT&T's revenue, the Journal said.
Another difference with Enjoy is that it's maintaining better labor standards than some other Internet delivery services, which offen treat workers as contractors. Each of Enjoy's 80 or so experts is getting a full salary with benefits, spanning a work week between 25 and 45 hours determined by the employees themselves. The company says this is possible because it doesn't have any traditional infrastructure costs.
The inspiration for Enjoy have may come from Johnson's 12-year tenure at Apple, where he was credited with guiding the Apple Store chain from its early days into a multinational success. Each outlet offers a service called Personal Setup, which is also free and takes buyers through the basic steps of using products like iPhones, Macs, and the Apple Watch.
Andrew Orr
Christine McKee
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Wesley Hilliard
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Amber Neely
27 Comments
Nice to see some former key Apple people don't feel compelled to compete with their former company. I wish him well.
The story as told by Cult of Mac says that these people come to your house between 8 AM and 8 PM. If I were home then, I wouldn't need help setting things up! I wonder what the price markup is. More than what the neighbor kid charges??
Cue the "Apple should buy Enjoy" talk.
Well, hopefully it works out. He hasn't exactly been drowning in success since he left Apple.
Well, hopefully it works out. He hasn't exactly been drowning in success since he left Apple.
He certainly hasn't but I thought he was on the right track with JC Penny and given time it could have worked. In any case I wish him well.