Magic Shop
Are your frontline employees going to save or kill your most important quarter? At Apple, nothing is left to chance
Fast Company, November 1, 2007 — Day one at my new job. Sporting white headphones, I am plugged into a computer watching Ridley Scott's awe-inspiring "1984" Macintosh ad, reviewing the company history, and getting pumped up about my new workplace. Like most of my coworkers, I'm already a loyal fan of the company, so starting this job will take my interest to the next level. I'm working as a Mac specialist at the Apple Store.
What happens between now and Christmas is the most important time for a very large sector of our economy: The National Retail Federation predicts almost $475 billion will pass between customers and merchants this holiday season, and whether such notable brands as Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Gap (NYSE:GPS), Home Depot (NYSE:HD), Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX), and many others think 2007 was a good year or a bad one comes down to this fourth-quarter finish line. The people most responsible for that success are, in many ways, their retail-store employees.
From Dennis Garcia on November 1, 2007
Good luck this season. I do see it differently where it comes to the prediciton however since it's way too early to tell. The coming year is in limbo where it comes to what retailers want to invest because of upcoming elections This christmas watch your shelves and analize quality and quantity of your merchandise, as well as observe what and how the customers look at it. Do they keep walking or do they come in to purchase. The credit crunch may also play a big part on the ability of these same customers to shop without any hesitations. Keep your headphones and the customers coming but don't think that the employees are most responsible for that success. You must bring the customer to your window first then get them to walk in to feel, smell, touch and try the merchandise, how things are lit and arranged, all that and more. Best of luck.