Apple Store Opening: Uptown – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Apple, with over 200 retail stores worldwide, has decided to open their fifth store in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN. This happens to be my local neighborhood so I thought I would cover the event, take some photos, tour the facility and see what another Grand Opening is like in what is a very interesting neighborhood for Apple to have a store location. A little background on the neighborhood first. Uptown Minneapolis, for those that are unfamiliar, is a place where you can find all sorts; it is a very eclectic neighborhood that is beginning to turn a bit yuppie if you ask me. Years ago, the area was a bit rough. Nowadays, things have simmered and are a bit less tense; you will find sushi bars, kitchen utility stores, great book stores, Famous Dave’s BBQ is across the street and right next to Apple is The North Face and Columbia. There are still a lot of interesting folks roaming the streets of Uptown, but the area is far more casual and is still quite eclectic. The area is starting to get a bit more cookie cutter and some of the original charm that was uptown is beginning to fade. Oh well, I still really enjoy uptown and will frequent the Apple Store here, but parking is a bitch (more on that in a bit)!
So, what was the opening like? In a word, BUSY! The email I received from Apple called for a 10am opening and I arrived around 9:30am. 
As you can see from the photo, the line was long. It wrapped around the building and continued for an entire block! I spoke with the person at the front of the line and he proudly declared that he was there since 3am. Yikes. That is one devoted fan or was out and decided, what the hell, and made a night of it. I wasn’t sure if he was aware there were four other Apple stores within a 15 mile radius, I didn’t want to burst his bubble in case he thought this was the first.
I went around to the back of the building and caught another really great picture of a hoard of Apple employees in their blue and black shirts. They had a LOT of staffers on hand and they were all in a great mood on opening day. Customer relations is top notch as always at the Apple Stores and Grand Opening day is about the pinacle of excitement for everyone there. If I had to guess, I would say that by 9:30am, there were about 400 people waiting in line to see the new Apple Store and receive their T-Shirt. Pretty impressive if you ask me for the opening of the fifth store in an area that has four already in a 15 mile radius.
So, 10am rolls around and we begin hearing cheers from the front of the line. These cheers are familiar, if you have ever been at an Apple Store for any significant roll-out (iPhone, iPad, etc.) they tend to like to shower incoming customers with applause. This was no different. Watch this video clip as new customers stroll in to applause as they are handed their welcome t-shirt packs.
Once I made it into the mothership as they like to call it, I was escorted by the business team for the media, into their briefing area. This is an impressive conference room on the second floor of the store that overlooks Hennepin avenue, and has a very nice veranda/zen garden and beautiful view of the construction across the street. 
Not a bad place to have briefings (whatever that means), I am not really sure what kind of business meetings they have at the Apple stores, but apparantly they have enough of them to warrant the need to have built this pretty sweet conference room/rooftop zen garden. What else is Apple going to spend their billions of cash reserves on? They also had a pretty awesome iPad app in the briefing center that controls the lighting/projector system (see pic below), but I am not sure what the app was. The Apple folks didn’t seem to know either. Oh well.
So I walked out of the Apple store with a couple of free t-shirts (they are black and say “Uptown”) and got my wife an iPad 3G. They had stock of pretty much everything, including the iPad cases, which are over a month backorder everywhere, so I snagged one of those as well (by 10:30am, they were gone). About parking at Uptown, uh, there isnt much other than a pay ramp across the street and some street parking. So, good luck with that one if you come for a visit. It is a beautiful store, with really high ceilings and a very large space. Like most Apple Stores, they pretty much all look the same and are all really quite something to behold.
PLEASE NOTE: For anyone in the area reading this, who does NOT have a reservation for an iPhone 4. They had a major problem on the 15th with their ordering system for Uptown specifically. Most people who, like me, tried to reserve a phone at Uptown, were met with the option grayed out. Therefore, this location will likely have a much greater number of phones for people without reservations! So if you do NOT have a reservation and want an iPhone 4 on Thursday, Uptown would be a great bet. But, you will be waiting outside without shelter, unlike the other 4 locations which are mall locations, so please take that into account. Have fun and good luck!!!
{Update: June 21st — After a number of emails and notes, specifically from my friends at First Tech (see comment below), I felt compelled to update the post. When I first heard about the Apple Store coming to Uptown, my first thought was, why the hell would they do that to First Tech? I bought my very first computer (or I should say my parents did) at First Tech, an Apple II, way back in probably 1978 or so when I was just a kid. I bought an Apple IIe from them, and even bought one of those Macs in the late 80′s that had the first voice recognition capabilities, although the name escapes me. The point is, First Tech has weathered the good times and ALL of the bad times and remained the BEST Apple sales, consulting, training and repair shop anywhere as far as I am concerned. Why Apple would choose to put a store a mile down the road makes no sense to me whatsoever. Why do this to their most loyal partner, since the late 70′s? Downtown would have given them a great location or in St. Paul on Grand. Makes no sense to me why they would shit on First Tech. So, if anyone reading this has not yet had the pleasure of going to a great Apple store with awesome service, please stop by First Tech, where parking is FREE!!!! They are located at 2640 Hennepin Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55408 | tel: 612-374-8000.}
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what is the address!! I am trying to just get that much so I can show up for a class. Maybe something to add to all this other stuff, thanks
Thanks for stopping Recbecca, would love to have you add some comments. The address is:
Store Information
Address:
3018 Hennepin Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55408
(952) 229-1460
When I first heard about the Apple Uptown Store, I thought, “What a great idea! Why didn’t somebody think of that earlier?” About 30 seconds later, I thought, “Somebody DID think of that — over 30 years ago.”
I work for the U of M. I’m supposed to get discounts from Apple stores. The amount is only a piffle. First Tech’s prices are identical, if not lower than anyone else’s. The staff and service are so good that I frequently buy there. Right now I am working on an iMac I got there last October, and I have bought two iPod nanos from them within the last 12 months (one for my wife and one for my clock radio).
I’m not saying that we should all boycott the Apple Store(s), but I am saying that if you live in or near Uptown, give First Tech a try. At least try to shop local for some Apple purchases. If you have a problem with your computer, you’ll end up there, anyway.
I’m sure FirstTech is pissed about the Apple Store, but frankly every time I’ve ventured in for a potential purchase (from Illustrator to a patch cable) these guys enjoy sticking me with a hefty markup. I think FirstTech’s pricing model has been geared towards gouging business customers over the years and now they will have to be price competitive on a retail level. Furthermore, some of their employees have been less than personable (more the geek that ‘tolerates’ people) – so again, management will be forced to rethink their storefront presence. I think the competition is healthy and only benefits the consumer. My advice to FirstTech…time to reinvent yourselves.
Anthony,
Really great points…it has been a while since I have been there, I think everyone will have a different experience. I wonder if the perception is widespread that they are not personable to the average FirstTech consumer. If that is the general perception, then perhaps it is time to reinvent themselves as you say and a little competition would be healthy. No doubt about it, they will have to up their game with increased competition. It is just sad to see it come from their own partner. I think perhaps they will focus their attention on what they have become most known for, repairs and training. But, as they say, the only one who benefits from increased competition is the consumer.
Thanks again for stopping by!
Adam
You can shop for Apple in Uptown and have free and easy parking. Just go 3 blocks north to FirstTech, where we have been selling Apple products since 1977. Not only do we sell the same Apple products (with the exception of the iPhone, not by our choice)we have a broader array of additional products and many services that you don’t find at the Apple stores.
Plus, when you shop with a local independent, more of your hard earned dollars stay in the community.
We have a sale on all Apple computers going on right now, too. This week only – so you can save $$, too. And we have all configs of iPads in stock. We haven’t been shipped any of Apple’s iPad cases yet, but have plenty of third party options in stock.
Harvey,
Thanks for stopping by, check out my update above….been on my mind for a long time!!!!
Adam
I am certain Apple’s retail division expects Uptown to draw most customers from among the residents in the immediate vicinity, or from the already amazing bus lines and the commuter bike trail, much like other streetside stores. I mean, Apple has a tremendous resource in those iTunes accounts. Surely Apple can use those accounts to geolocate all their customers, I am comfortable guaranteeing that Apple knows there is such a huge clustering of Apple customers either around Uptown (do you seriously doubt this?) or near a busline that serves Uptown.
Thanks for visiting and the reply! Another native i see, have you checked out the new store yet? If not, you should when you can, it is pretty cool. I don’t doubt Apple did their homework on demographics here. Certainly, the neighborhood walkup traffic will be sustainable. I am sure the store will do just fine, my only comment was that anyone who doesn’t either walk, bike or bus to the store will have to pay to park. And, any of those modes of transport don’t make lugging an iMac all that practical. An iPhone, sure, but it may make someone think about just running over to another store instead. I live closer to Uptown, but just close enough to Southdale that I will avoid Uptown because of the parking issue. My only point.
Thanks again for visiting!
Adam
Wow! Great report.
I remember when Apple opened @ Ridgedale Mall. Mall security thought we were crazy being their very early. They said “It won’t be busy at this time in the morning.”
However, security was wrong and it was huge line from Apple store to JCPenney store. Security came back and said “Sorry, folks. I was wrong. This is amazing!
Yea, I think that parking is going to be the real issue for this store since there is no free parking really anywhere within a couple blocks, unless you get real lucky. It was packed there today, glad I was just there to take pics and blog. Must say though, it only took a few minutes to get my iPad. They have it down to a science; any other store on opening day would have buckled under the strain of that many people.