Located in a strategic place right in front of the Chicago River, Foster + partners had designed the Apple store Chicago in November 2017 which is now open with a see-through facade and a huge staircase. With an estimated price tag of 30 million dollars, the transparent Apple store in Chicago was considered as one of Apple’s “most ambitious” stores when constructed in 2009.
Courtesy of Apple
The Design of the Apple Store Chicago:
Apple has also claimed that this store design could be reshaping the future of shopping. They aim for creating a community hub with their stores rather than just a commercial space. The transparent glass covering the entire facade aims to provide so the apple products can be clearly visible from all directions. Virtual Reality games, coding courses, fun activities, and robots are all clearly visible, which makes people curious to go inside.
Therefore, it attracts people from different spots within North Michigan Avenue. Additionally, this Apple store in Chicago is surrounded by many of the city’s architectural landmarks. These include the Trump Tower, Tribune Tower, the Wrigley Building, and Marina City. Check out this walkthrough for a sneak peek of the Foster + Partners-designed store.
Unfortunately, the “most ambitious store” may not be designed with respect to Michigan’s weather conditions. This Apple store in Chicago appears to be a bit unsafe for the Chicago weather, especially the roof. The ceiling is made of beautiful American white oak, yet the external roof is not adequately designed for this place.
The roof mimics a giant laptop with a gentle slope. Sadly, large blocks of snow were falling and causing unwanted difficulties for pedestrians. In order to keep everyone safe, Apple had to rope off their outdoor public area people enjoy hanging out at. Signs that say “Watch for falling snow ice” were placed all over the area.
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Courtesy of Young Learners
On the bright side, Apple spokesman Nick Leahy has assured that they will hopefully fix this problem soon. He said “The roof has a warming system that’s built into it. It needed some fine-tuning and it got re-programmed today. It’s hopefully a temporary problem.”
Fairly speaking, these signs are commonly used in many places in Michigan.
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