While waiting for a screening of the incredible movie, Junebug, to begin, Clyde and I drop in on one of Seattle's Apple Stores. I'm a dedicated Windows PC user, but my adoption of the clever iPod -- a beautifully engineered piece of personal technology -- is prompting new curiousity about Apple's products.
I have to confess that I have, after two bad experiences, decided never to visit Jackson's consistently rude and clueless Apple store, a badly-misnamed shop called "User Friendly," again ... so, if I'm going to get exposure to Apple's products and services, that exposure is going to have to be had while we're on the road. With high hopes, I pull open the heavy glass doors and step inside.
Some observations:
1) Every single customer in the store appears to be complaining about something. One woman has recently bought an expensive new Apple computer. It doesn't work. The folks at this shop don't seem to be giving her the answers she needs, and the conversation is getting testier with every passing second. At the service counter, a man is unhappy about a defect in his G4. At the counter near the front, someone is explaining -- over and over again -- why the clerk will, in fact, take a certain "lemon" back.
2) Every single computer in the place is overpriced. A Windows-based laptop with 512 MB of memory and a 100 GB hard drive (and many other bells and whistles) goes for about $999. A comparable unit at the Apple store goes for $2675.00. Other models tend to cost two to three times what a PC with similar hardware would cost.
3) Every single purchase is a hassle. There are a lot of folks in the store, but there's only one register open. Worse, the guy behind the register is doubling as a problem solver / customer service rep, so every transaction takes between eleven and fifteen minutes. A hint to the wise: you want to make it quick and easy for people to give their money to you. Route problems to a problem desk, and keep the cash registers clear!
4) Every single employee is rude and surly. Apparently, all the Apples in this barrel were sour ones. Bart, a clerk, motions for me to come to his cash register with my purchase (an iPod ToughSkin), but the second I step up, he routes me to his neighbor, Rick.
Rick ignores me and glares at Bart. "I've got to go to lunch. This is ridiculous. You wait on him."
Bart throws up his hands. "I'm at lunch! I left five minutes ago, came back to get my keys, and got stuck waiting on people. You take him."
Rick makes a face. "I need you back here behind the counter."
Bart shakes his head. "Not my problem, man. I'm off the clock."
Rick never says a word to me; instead, he rings me up, hands me a receipt to sign, and tosses my purchase back at me.
"Hope you get lunch soon," I say.
Rick glares at me, pointedly looks over my shoulder, and says, "Next!"
Once again, I find myself leaving an Apple Store turned off to the entire product line by the behavior of the staff.
I'd say someone in employee training at Apple needs to Think Different.
