You probably never saw Apple’s using the pure Red color to decorate its online store. But today, Apple changes its style. With the Chinese online Apple Store official launched, you finally find some red elements there. And I would think it’s going to be in more red soon as it’s the Chinese red.
Although it still says iPhone 4 is out of stock and the new Macbook Air is not available, many Apple’s products can be purchased online and got delivered for free the next day, including iPad which was reported sold out in China.
Many foreign media seems quite excited about this and reported it in details (you may read WJS, AppleInsider etc). But what I would love to add one point here is they seems wrong at one thing, the payment system. WSJ says “But other hurdles remain, including the requirement for users to have dual-currency credit cards in order to make purchases within the store”, which is actually not true. I’ve tested it out, the most popular online payment gateway in China, Alipay has been well integrated into its payment system. In other words, it’s convenient enough for most users to pay online.
Obviously, with Apple Store launched in China, Apple is more aggressively targeted at this massive market and also officially announced the war against the long-time grey market where most of iPhone in China came from. Why should I buy from grey market if there is not much price difference?
WSJ says, According to research firm Analysys International, Apple had 7.1% of China’s smartphone market as of the second quarter, ranking fifth after Nokia Corp., Samsung Electronics Co., Motorola Inc. and Sony Ericsson; also according to research firm IDC, Apple has less than 1% share of unit shipments in the PC market. The figures sound a bit small, but if you take a look at the photo (left) I took days again in a friend-gathering party, what would you say?
As an investor in Apple, this confirms my gut feeling, like McDonald's, Apple will have brand loyalty for many years to come.
As an investor in Apple, this confirms my gut feeling, like McDonald's, Apple will have brand loyalty for many years to come.