The Apple Hendrix Experience

From:  Alan Forrest Smith
Date?: 06/11/2008

I don't know what it is about teenagers but hey they are pretty miserable right? So here was the deal. My 16 year old insisted I go out shopping with him in Manchester. I think I'm cool of course but he thinks I am totally embarrassing (I wonder who's right)

Anyway vanity aside I wasn't really expecting a to experience what I did experience that day.

Now you really have to listen to this. It is a story of positioning and stealth selling!

So we walked along through a shopping place called the Trafford Centre in Manchester England.

Now my son being like most other 16 years old these days wanted to drag me along to the Apple Shop to check out the iPOD.

I tagged along like most 40 year old miserable dads do until ... I was slapped in the face by the The Apple Hendrix Experience.

Let me explain.

A shop is a shop right? It has a front, products and a bunch of miserable staff waiting to robotically serve you.

Now The New Apple Hendrix Experience.

Let me walk you into this place.

As we walked up to the new store all you could hear was music (Rage Against The Machine) blasting out of the front. There was no traditional frot on the shop it was totally open, so no door to walk through.

So when you arrive there the whole front is open. One young guy is standing at the front and greets you as you walk in.

Down the middle of the shop you have large hi-tech space age looking tables all in white sized around 5 foot by 10 foot in size.

On each table is a theme. The first table that hits you when you walk in is the new video iPOD. There are stacks of these things on the tables (fixed down so can't be stolen).

Around the table is packed out completely with hungry testers and buyers. When I say packed I mean MOBBED! There are about 4-6 of these tables in the shop.

The place where you pay is interesting. It looks like a bar with high stools. From one end to the other you have people sat trying Apple note books. It's packed out!

On the right hand side there are two young men. One has a Gibson guitar plugged into the Mac. The other guy has a headset on and is mixing the guitar into a software program. They are totally surrounded by potential young rock guns wanting to grab hold of the mouse and mix their own sounds.

And a Bit Further Down ...

There is a screen that is 30"! B-L-I-M-E-Y!!!

I came to this conclusion and it's this ...

We Can Learn From These Guys! How? Keep reading.

First they don't sell computers.

They sell,

Techology: The Mac, iBook, Powerbooks, Notebooks, iPods, iSight... need I go on.

Design: Wow, this stuff is art, art and art. Some of the most incredible designs of pop culture in the 21st century will be immortalized by Apple I am sure of that.

The Cult: When you buy you are actually paying for a lifetime membership into the cult of Apple.

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