Apple has launched its new Orchard Road store this weekend in Singapore, making it the first of its stores to arrive in Southeast Asia. Thousands of customers lined up outside the store beginning as early as Friday night. The doors opened on Saturday morning at 10 AM.
In its press statement, Apple wrote:
Braving the equatorial heat … customers were greeted by Apple’s Angela Ahrendts and the store’s 237 employees.
As with many Apple stores all over the world, Orchard Road also as some unique aspects to it. The highlight of the building which users will notice is the twin curved Castagna stone staircases. Another unique highlight of the building is its 25-foot canopy which protects the store and customers from tropical sunlight and provides shelter from the rain.
With the addition of the Singaporean store, the total number of Apple Stores worldwide has risen to 496 with 270 of those being in the US and 40 being in China. The UK, Canada and Australia have 38, 29, and 22 stores respectively and are ranked third, fourth and fifth for the number of Apple stores they have. Belgium, Macau, Mexico and Singapore are the only countries which have just one Apple Store.