Apple preparing to sell Apple Watch in stores, no online reservation needed

Apple Watch Music Bluetooth headset teaser 002

The Apple Watch has not been available for walk-in customers since its April 24 launch as high demand and poor yields forced Apple to adopt an online-only reservation system with optional try-on appointments.

Now 9to5Mac is reporting that you won’t need to pre-reserve your unit online as the firm will soon permit end-to-end sales in its brick-and-mortar stores.

As we reported, CEO Tim Cook told retail employees during his May 2015 trip to China that the wearable device would be available for walk-in purchases in June. In addition to buying the device in-store, customers will be allowed to reserve models not yet in stock.

Angela Ahrendts, Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores, sent an internal video to Apple’s retail army to announce the upcoming changes. In it, she announces the start of retail preparations for the in-store launch of the Apple Watch.

“This is our moment to shine, this will be a launch unlike any we’ve ever had before,” she said. “This is what you were born to do, this is why you are at Apple.”

“This is where the rubber hits the road, and now we need to make sure that we are above and beyond ready,” she apparently told employees, adding that Apple needs to “make sure that it has the best customer experience and that this launch is faster, smarter, and better than Apple has ever done before.”

The video also features Jim Bean, Apple’s Vice President of Retail Operations, who told staff that training materials for the retail launch are available to employees internally. Retail staff is being instructed to focus on the benefits of Apple Pay for Apple Watch. There will also be new workshops to teach customers about the Apple Watch’s Accessibility features.

Because “it’s going to be a little tougher to get everyone the exact watch that they want,” Apple is taking advantage of an upcoming “Reserve and Pickup” feature on the Apple Online Store which will let customers visit their nearest store at 8am each day to check if their preferred watch is in stock.

“If the store has the particular version in stock, the customer can reserve it and choose a time to pick it up in all Apple Watch countries,” reads the report.

If you haven’t purchased Apple Watch yet, will you be buying one soon? Changed your mind about buying an Apple Watch, you say?

Share your reasons with other readers down in the comments.

Source: 9to5Mac