Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
- Apple is permanently closing three US retail stores in Towson, North County, and Trumbull in June due to declining mall conditions and retailer departures.
- The Towson closure is particularly significant as it was the first Apple retail location to unionize in 2022, with the union suspecting union-busting tactics.
- Macworld reports that while employees at North County and Trumbull can relocate, Towson staff must apply for other positions, highlighting Apple’s rare permanent store closures.
Apple is taking the unusual step of permanently closing three Apple Store locations: Apple Towson Town Center, Apple North County, and Apple Trumbull. The stores are all temporarily closed today, according to Apple’s retail site, and will be shuttered in June.
In a statement, Apple said:
At Apple, we are constantly striving to deliver exceptional service and great experiences for our customers. As we continue investing to expand and enhance our retail stores and offerings worldwide, we remain deliberate about evaluating our existing locations to ensure that we can meet our customers’ needs in the best way. Following the departure of several retailers and declining conditions at Trumbull Mall, the Shops at North County, and Towson Town Center, we’ve made the difficult decision to close our stores at these locations.
Our team members at Trumbull and North County will continue their roles at nearby Apple Retail stores. Towson employees will be eligible to apply for open roles at Apple in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement. We look forward to continuing to serve customers at nearby stores and on Apple.com, the Apple Store app, and at Apple Authorized Resellers and Service Providers.
Workers at the Towson, Maryland, Apple Store, which has been open since 2002, became the first to unionize in 2022 following a drawn-out battle. Several major stores, restaurants, and a movie theater have left the mall recently due to crime and competition from online shopping, WBAL-TV has reported. While Apple’s early retail locations were mostly inside malls, its most recent stores have been standalone locations or at outdoor malls.
In a statement to WBAL TV, the union said:
The IAM Union is outraged by Apple’s decision to close its Towson, Md., store—the first unionized Apple retail location in the United States and abandon both its workers and a community that relies on it for critical services and its unique access to public transit.
Apple’s claim that the collective bargaining agreement prevents relocation is simply false and raises serious concerns that this closure is a cynical attempt to bust the union.
We are exploring all legal options and will work with elected officials and allies to hold Apple accountable.
Apple Store workers at Penn Square Mall, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, are also unionized, and efforts are underway at stores in New York, Kentucky, and Ohio.
Apple regularly closes stores temporarily for renovation, but permanent closures are rare, with only a handful closing their doors forever, including one at Apple’s former headquarters at Infinite Loop in Cupertino. Typically, closures happen because the store in question is located in a mall that is in decline. That is exactly what is happening with these three locations.
