Google opening first permanent physical retail store in New York City

Image Credit: Google

The store will serve as a way for customers to purchase products made by Google, including Pixel phones, Nest products, Fitbit devices, Pixelbooks, and more. The store will also allow customers to experience products and services before purchasing them.

Google states that they'll also have experts available to help with troubleshooting software, repairing hardware, and offering advice to new and seasoned customers alike.

The company also addresses the issue of opening a store during the aftermath of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Customers will be required to wear masks and sanitize their hands upon entering, and the store staff will limit the amount customers who can enter the store at one time. Customers will also be able to order online and pick up items at the store, reducing the time they need to spend at the location.

While there's no hard date set for the storefront to open, Google states that it will happen in summer 2021. The store will be located on the corner of 15th Street and 9th Avenue.

Apple recently celebrated 20 years of physical retail stores. The first stores, Apple Tysons Corner and Apple Glendale Galleria, opened on May 19, 2001, in Virginia and California, respectively.

Microsoft, on the other hand, recently shuttered all of its physical retail stores in favor of moving to a fully online retail experience.

Apple may be planning on expanding its existing 11 Penn Plaza office, also located in New York City. The company is said to be negotiating with its landlords to add an additional 60,000 square feet to its existing 220,000 square feet of office space.

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