Apple has opened its first few stores in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, marking its entry into the Arab Emirates. On Thursday, Apple opened its doors to eager shoppers in Dubai by opening two new stores in Dubai's Mall of the Emirates, and also at Abu Dhabi's Yas Mall. The stores have come up next to High Street luxury fashion brands like Fendi, Burberry, Armani, etc. Both stores are state-of-the-art, and is giagntic in size. Apple Retail Head, Angela Ahrendts, has tweeted saying that the staff at these stores will be able to cater to customers in 26 languages. The pictures of the store also show a line-up of the Apple Watch right in the center, and it seems like the tech giant is aiming to take advantage of the high profile shoppers of the Emirates. The stores also have experience zones, and Apple is also looking to highlight its portfolio of Beats headphones and audio accessories. Apple had taken over the Beats brand last year, for $3 billion.
Window view of the new Apple store in Dubai
The opening saw crowds gathered around the store. These included eager customers waiting to get their hands on the much-coveted Apple products. The event also saw a swarm of journalists surrounding the store, giving it the all the hype and publicity that Apple was expecting.
Apple products stacked up in the Dubai store
Last year, Apple CEO Tim Cook had visited local electronics vendors in UAE, and had also met the Prime Minister. Rumours of Apple opening stores have been circulating in the Arab countries for as long as 8 years now. Check out the video of the store launch by Gulf Business, and tell us if you think Apple needs to open such stores in India as well.