Why it matters to you
Apple Stores are known for their innovative design, but this is something completely different. Will the trend catch on with competitors?
You won’t be able to not know what this new building in Chicago sells. Unless, by some chance, you’ve been living under a rock for the last decade or so. According to the latest photos and videos from DNAinfo, the new Apple Store currently being constructed on the Chicago River is topped not with a cherry, but with a Macbook.
The Windy City’s latest retail store is located at Pioneer Court, 401 N. Michigan Avenue, and on Thursday, it got a big, white Apple logo on its roof. But that roof just so happens to be curved and metallic, which of course, makes it look a whole lot like the lid of an Apple laptop. But don’t get too excited — you can’t just head over there and snap a photo yourself. DNAinfo reported that less than an hour after the logo was placed, crews rolled the apple up and removed it (because apparently, you don’t want to give away all your surprises at once).
The addition of the Apple logo appears to be of particular interest because when renderings of the new store were initially publicized back in 2015, the telltale sign was nowhere to be seen. But it’s been two years, and just maybe, plans have changed.
The new store will serve as Apple’s new home base in Illinois’ largest city — previously, the flagship store in Chicago was located at 679 N. Michigan Avenue. “Our store on North Michigan Avenue has welcomed more than 23 million customers since it opened in 2003, and we’re now creating something even more remarkable for Chicago,” Nick Leahy, an Apple spokesman, told DNAinfo in 2015.
When it’s completed, the new store is slated to span a whopping 20,000 square feet, and of course, will be largely made of glass. Designed by London-based Foster+Partners, the new building will extend from Pioneer Court to the riverfront. But alas, we still don’t know when the newest Apple store will open.
Of course, the new Apple store in Chicago may not be quite as cool as Apple’s new headquarters (because is anything as cool as a spaceship?) but it’s still something to talk about.