Mini Apple Stores may be headed to Sam's Club
When you think of Apple, what likely comes to mind is well-designed high-end electronics that may or may not be worth the hefty price. When you think of Sam’s Club, you probably think something more along the lines of bulk packages of individually wrapped pickles, and free samples of teriyaki chicken on a toothpick. But those two worlds may soon combine. According to 9to5Mac, Sam’s Club (a subsidiary of Walmart) and Apple are in early negotiations to open mini Apple Stores inside Sam’s Club locations.
As members know, Sam’s Club already sells Apple’s lines of iPods, iPads, and iPhones. If the deal goes through, Apple will have a larger “store-in-store” setup, which would offer Mac desktops and laptops, in addition to Apple’s mobile devices. A backup plan is also reportedly in place, which includes Sam’s Club simply selling Macs, without the addition of a bigger Apple setup.
As with everything Apple, this report remains in the realm of speculation. But there are a few reasons this story carries a high likelihood of truth. First, Apple already has such store-in-store setups at Best Buy locations, so this would only be an expansion of something Apple is already doing. Second, Sam’s Club already sells Apple products; simply expanding its product offering isn’t much of a stretch.
In addition to all this, both Sam’s Club and Apple stand to make money from an expanded partnership — which is really all that matters here. Sam’s Club sells a wide range of electronics, so it’s not inconceivable that customers would go their to buy a Macbook Air, especially in areas that don’t have a dedicated Apple Store. At least, that’s the theory.
Would you go to Sam’s Club to buy a high-end Apple laptop or desktop PC?
[Image via BestBuy.com]
This article was originally posted on Digital Trends
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