Apple at the Retail Crossroads ⇥

John Dvorak:

So how much more can Apple grow the retail business?

I see no reason why Apple cannot have 1,000 stores that would all be successful. Staples Inc., the office-supply chain, has 2,000-plus stores.

Sound logic. I mean, Staples stores don’t ever generate the kind of revenue that Apple stores do, but a thousand stores for an accessible quality brand seems fair.

Apple seems so adept at retail that there is no reason to doubt that it could go out and buy a company like Staples to expand in the sector. Why not?

Seriously? That would be a terrible idea. I can’t think of a Staples store that would match any of the criteria for an Apple store in terms of location, design, structure or size. Apple has much better options for their $80 billion.

(via Kontra)