Apple plans massive retail store expansion ahead of iPhone 5 release

Preparing for iPhone 5 release, Apple is setting up 30 new outlets by the end of the third quarter, planning to expand its retail stores. According to the company’s CFO Peter Oppenheimer, the second quarter record sales of 20.3 million iPhone units and 9.2 million iPad units boosted Apple’s profits to $282 million with a $3.5 billion in revenues.

The average data shows that each of the company’s retail stores generated about $ 10.8 million in each quarter, except for the holiday period, when average sales hit $ 12 million.

Apple’s successful sales are not only due to iPhones and iPads, as Mac computers also sold well, 768,000 units during this quarter. Oppenheimer has also reported that Apple’s stores hosted a staggering number of 73.7 million visitors and that over two million were held Personal Setup sessions, hence Apple’s audience proving to be one of the most loyal ones among the PC and smartphone users.

The first retail store in Apple’s plans is one in Hong Kong, Apple’s Chief Operation Officer Tim Cook arguing that China is a key region for retail expansion. Hoping to benefit from the strong sales in Asia Pacific market, the company intends to open 25 stores in China by the end of the year.

No wonder Apple thinks of China’s market as a key one, since this quarter’s sales in Asia Pacific were double the company’s 16% average growth over the previous quarter. And if we were to compare it with the year ago quarter, Apple’s Asia Pacific sales were three times the company’s average growth of 82% , namely up an incredible 247 percent.