Coronavirus forcing Apple to postpone February 10 China retail reopen [u]

Apple Wonder City in Nanjing is one of three stores closed due to coronavirus.

Last updated 4 years ago

Apple's Deirdre O'Brien has written to Apple Store staff in China to explain the company's plans for reopening in China under the ongoing coronavirus threat, and how the date for reopening stores is still to be determined.

Currently, Apple offices and 42 stores are closed because of the coronavirus. Apple's Senior Vice President of Retail and People, Deirdre O'Brien, has written to all Apple Store staff in China with an update saying that while Apple was planning to reopen on February 10, discussions are still ongoing.

According to the note by O'Brien, seen by MacGeneration and authenticated by AppleInsider, Apple is continuing to work with heath experts and will be issuing further updates after the February 10 expected open.

Team, I want to thank every one of you for the care, flexibility and spirit you have shown over the past few weeks. Around the world, the entire Apple family stands committed to helping our colleagues, communities, suppliers, partners and customers in China as they care for their health and return to daily life. Apple's support for the global coronavirus response is broad and ongoing, including our donation to the public health effort.

Since my last note, we have been in constant consultation with public health experts, government authorities and our teams and leaders in China. In light of those conversations, I want to share new information about Apple's workplaces.

We are working toward reopening Apple's Corporate Offices and Contact Centers in China next week. We recognize that personal movement and travel restrictions are ongoing and schools are closed in many places, and managers will be working with their teams to offer additional support. You will receive a follow up communication shortly with more information.

Apple's Retail Stores are actively working to reopen at a date that will be determined next week. Additional cleaning, health protocols and local restrictions around public spaces will factor into this decision. Retail teams will receive updates from their managers on the opening date for their store and on other supportive steps we are taking.

Individual business leaders will be reaching out to you soon with more information relevant to your work. In addition to your manager, your People Business Partner and People Support are your resource for any questions you may have. To stay up to date with Apple's efforts, please continue to check the dedicated coronavirus page we've created on the People site.

As we work together to gradually resume work over the next few weeks, your well-being is our first priority. We are deeply grateful to everyone for facing this challenging period with the utmost empathy and understanding.

Deirdre

Apple began closing stores in January. It then closed all the remaining stores and offices in China on February 1, with the intention that they would reopen after February 9.

Currently the stores are listed online as opening on Monday February 10, but according to MacGeneration, it's possible that not all stores will open on the same day.

Separately, iPhone supplier Foxconn has now told staff at its Shenzhen plant to stay away and has yet to list a return date.

Update: Apple publicly confirmed the decision to extend store closures in a statement to CNBC that repeats key details from O'Brien's letter.

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6 Comments

sirozha 801 comments · 15 Years

About 4 years ago

The situation with the Coronavirus in China is not improving. The number of those who die
daily continues to increase. The number of those who get infected daily has supposedly peaked, but there’s a big concern that the official numbers are grossly underreported.

Foxconn has just announced that they are not reopening their factories next Monday, which was to be expected.

The reality with the Coronavirus is much worse than what China wants the rest of the world to
believe. There is likely a million people or more already infected, and the official numbers of dead are just the tip of the iceberg.

There’s a report on NPR this morning that those found infected are rounded up and moved to quarantine camps against their will in China. Hong Kong announced that those who are placed under quarantine and break it will face 6 months in prison and a big fine. Let’s be honest here: measures like these are not taken to stave off a rather insignificant virus that China wants the rest of the world believe that Coronavirus is. You don’t quarantine over 60 million people, build concentration camps for those infected, shut down your entire economy, threaten doctors with prison terms for sharing information, etc. if this were a mild seasonal viral infection.

One thing I learned from this experience is what Chinese dietary habits are like. The horror animal markets in China and Indonesia where dogs, cats, rats, bats, monkeys, etc. are sold for food, bludgeoned in front of the buyers and then cooked with blowtorches while still alive and screaming from unbearable pain. That is something that I will never be able to get out of my mind. I will NEVER eat in a Chinese restaurant - not in the US nor anywhere else in the world. I haven’t eaten Chinese food in over a decade, but now I have a good reason to never do this again. You never know what meat you will be served there. There’s always been a rumor that you may be served dogs, cats, and rats, but I always thought this was just a bad joke. Now I know that’s what the Chinese eat in China, and chances are that those cheap Chinese buffets in the US are not cheap because of some magic but for a reason.

cornchip 1943 comments · 11 Years

About 4 years ago

I’m not an economist, so I’m talking out my pooper here, but this wouldn’t be some Sort of attempt at retaliation for tariffs would it?

sailorpaul 305 comments · 14 Years

About 4 years ago

The discussion amongst our medical staff is that China’s lockdown has blocked the resupply of IV fluids and meds and hospital supplies into the quarantine area.

They feel that is the major reason for the differential in death rate between China and the rest of the world

Caveat: that’s an assessment from half a world away, and only a few conversations. YMMV

blah64 989 comments · 18 Years

About 4 years ago

sirozha said:

The situation with the Coronavirus in China is not improving. The number of those who die
daily continues to increase. The number of those who get infected daily has supposedly peaked, but there’s a big concern that the official numbers are grossly underreported.
Foxconn has just announced that they are not reopening their factories next Monday, which was to be expected.

The reality with the Coronavirus is much worse than what China wants the rest of the world to
believe. There is likely a million people or more already infected, and the official numbers of dead are just the tip of the iceberg.

There’s a report on NPR this morning that those found infected are rounded up and moved to quarantine camps against their will in China. Hong Kong announced that those who are placed under quarantine and break it will face 6 months in prison and a big fine. Let’s be honest here: measures like these are not taken to stave off a rather insignificant virus that China wants the rest of the world believe that Coronavirus is. You don’t quarantine over 60 million people, build concentration camps for those infected, shut down your entire economy, threaten doctors with prison terms for sharing information, etc. if this were a mild seasonal viral infection.

You've brought up some very good points, and in fact I pointed out that you and Kevin Kee were being unjustly maligned by Soli in another thread: https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/214553/

That said, be careful to not go overboard with the stuff below...
One thing I learned from this experience is what Chinese dietary habits are like. The horror animal markets in China and Indonesia where dogs, cats, rats, bats, monkeys, etc. are sold for food, bludgeoned in front of the buyers and then cooked with blowtorches while still alive and screaming from unbearable pain. That is something that I will never be able to get out of my mind. I will NEVER eat in a Chinese restaurant - not in the US nor anywhere else in the world. I haven’t eaten Chinese food in over a decade, but now I have a good reason to never do this again. You never know what meat you will be served there. There’s always been a rumor that you may be served dogs, cats, and rats, but I always thought this was just a bad joke. Now I know that’s what the Chinese eat in China, and chances are that those cheap Chinese buffets in the US are not cheap because of some magic but for a reason.

There is indeed a serious problem with wild life markets in China, but please don't make it sound like it's something all Chinese do. It's highly geographic in nature, and most Chinese, especially those living in large, modern cities like Shanghai simply don't take part in this. The odds that someone would accidentally run across anything like this happening in a Chinese restaurant in the U.S. is virtually nil. Probably no worse than the odds of getting served roadkill at a Texas BBQ joint.

Unfortunately, in places where it is the custom, it's going to be very challenging to eradicate. One would have thought after SARS that it would have faded into oblivion, but in some areas it's almost like a religious practice, and therefore it's not going to go away on its own. If there's anything good about having a dictatorial government, it's that if they truly decide to put an end to wild life markets, they can probably reduce it down to a tiny trickle, where it's only happening in deep, dark, secret places. Not perfect, but if it can be reduced to 1-2% of what it is now, that will be a huge health win. For China and for the world at large.

tmay 6455 comments · 11 Years

About 4 years ago

blah64 said:

sirozha said:

The situation with the Coronavirus in China is not improving. The number of those who die
daily continues to increase. The number of those who get infected daily has supposedly peaked, but there’s a big concern that the official numbers are grossly underreported.
Foxconn has just announced that they are not reopening their factories next Monday, which was to be expected.

The reality with the Coronavirus is much worse than what China wants the rest of the world to
believe. There is likely a million people or more already infected, and the official numbers of dead are just the tip of the iceberg.

There’s a report on NPR this morning that those found infected are rounded up and moved to quarantine camps against their will in China. Hong Kong announced that those who are placed under quarantine and break it will face 6 months in prison and a big fine. Let’s be honest here: measures like these are not taken to stave off a rather insignificant virus that China wants the rest of the world believe that Coronavirus is. You don’t quarantine over 60 million people, build concentration camps for those infected, shut down your entire economy, threaten doctors with prison terms for sharing information, etc. if this were a mild seasonal viral infection.

You've brought up some very good points, and in fact I pointed out that you and Kevin Kee were being unjustly maligned by Soli in another thread: https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/214553/

That said, be careful to not go overboard with the stuff below...
One thing I learned from this experience is what Chinese dietary habits are like. The horror animal markets in China and Indonesia where dogs, cats, rats, bats, monkeys, etc. are sold for food, bludgeoned in front of the buyers and then cooked with blowtorches while still alive and screaming from unbearable pain. That is something that I will never be able to get out of my mind. I will NEVER eat in a Chinese restaurant - not in the US nor anywhere else in the world. I haven’t eaten Chinese food in over a decade, but now I have a good reason to never do this again. You never know what meat you will be served there. There’s always been a rumor that you may be served dogs, cats, and rats, but I always thought this was just a bad joke. Now I know that’s what the Chinese eat in China, and chances are that those cheap Chinese buffets in the US are not cheap because of some magic but for a reason.

There is indeed a serious problem with wild life markets in China, but please don't make it sound like it's something all Chinese do. It's highly geographic in nature, and most Chinese, especially those living in large, modern cities like Shanghai simply don't take part in this. The odds that someone would accidentally run across anything like this happening in a Chinese restaurant in the U.S. is virtually nil. Probably no worse than the odds of getting served roadkill at a Texas BBQ joint.

Unfortunately, in places where it is the custom, it's going to be very challenging to eradicate. One would have thought after SARS that it would have faded into oblivion, but in some areas it's almost like a religious practice, and therefore it's not going to go away on its own. If there's anything good about having a dictatorial government, it's that if they truly decide to put an end to wild life markets, they can probably reduce it down to a tiny trickle, where it's only happening in deep, dark, secret places. Not perfect, but if it can be reduced to 1-2% of what it is now, that will be a huge health win. For China and for the world at large.

This is the same country that last year had 200 m pigs slaughtered and taken off the market for African Swine Fever out of 400 m total. Their animal husbandry practices are abysmal. As I posted before, it took Spain 35 years to remove African Swine Fever from the country.