By Slash Lane
Published: 04:30 PM EST (01:30 PM PST)
Apple is tweaking the titles and attire of its retail staff, equipping store managers with "magic iPhones," and preparing for "opening day" at its latest flagship location in downtown Boston (the facade of which was recently shrouded in a replica Green Monster).
With sales at the international retail chain booming thanks to more than just Macs,
ifoAppleStore reports on a
number of changes recently instated to reflect the company's expanded growth into new markets.
Beginning this week, Mac Geniuses will be referred to as simply "Geniuses," Mac Specialist will similarly become "Specialists," and Business Consultants will be renamed "Business Partners."
In a move also aimed at better distinguishing the roles of each staffer, employee clothing will see the following changes: Specialists will now wear light blue t-shirts once worn by Concierges, who will now wear bright orange.
At the same time, Business Partners will reportedly take on a more professional appearance with dark blue, buttoned-down shirts with "Business" embroidered on the sleeve next to the Apple logo. Genius and Creative employees will continue to wear dark blue, while back-of-house staff will be clad in black.
Each of the new retail t-shirts are said to sport fresh slogans, such as "Not all heroes wear capes." for Geniuses and "Some artists use brushes. I prefer boxes." for back-of-house stockroom attendants.
Meanwhile,
ifoAppleStore claims that store managers will soon be privy to an advanced and interlinked web of real-time retail data, thanks largely to
a proprietary application Apple is developing for their iPhones.
"Apple tracks the revenue performance of its retail stores in real time at the Cupertino, Calif.-based headquarters, and can immediately spot purchase trends, new product success, returns and other activities," the publication said. "Now, that technology is reportedly being extended to managers at the stores themselves with special software installed on an iPhone, allow them to track sales, inventory and employee performance."
The same piece of software will also include complete contact information for the store employees, along with maps and contact information for other stores in the chain,
ifo added.
While all this is going on, Apple is also planning for "opening day" at its Boston-based flagship retail shop at 815 Boylston Street. Scaffolding in front of the double-decker, 6,384-square-foot mega store was recently remove and the concealing plywood adorned green in a clear-cut replica of Fenway Park's Green Monster.
It reads: "Opening Day. Coming Soon."
