Samsung opens Apple-style store in Sydney, short walk from Apple store

Samsung has just opened its very first Experience retail store in Australia, though visitors may find the new shop reminds them of another one located just around the corner.

When Samsung looked around for ideas on how to design its Experience retail store, it’s not hard to work out from where it drew much of its inspiration. It’s the minimalist design, the tables showing off the latest gadgets and devices, the blue-shirted employees, the overall look and feel – and to think that in San Jose right now a nine-person jury is discussing whether Samsung is a “copyist”.

After opening its first North American Experience retail store in Vancouver last month, the Korean company has now moved into a new site in Sydney, Australia, just a short walk from – you guessed it – an Apple store.

Bedecked with smartphones and tablets – including its new Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet – as well as a wide range of accompanying accessories, the new store has a light and airy look, judging by pictures posted by the Sydney Morning Herald’s technology editor, Asher Moses.

Moses reports Samsung as claiming the store was “all its own idea,” though of course the similarities between Samsung’s new store and Apple’s equivalent aren’t lost on Moses. “Everything from the store layout to the sales staff to the products and even the packaging and promotional material is uncannily Apple-esque,” he notes.

When asked about the look of the new store and its similarity to Apple’s design, Tyler McGee, vice-president of telecommunications for Samsung Australia, conveniently failed to address the issue. “Well, if you look at our layout this is the layout that we use around the world and it’s about basically giving the consumers the opportunity to interact, learn and play with our devices,” he said.

There is one part of the Apple story that it’s safe to say the Korean tech company is out to copy, and that’s the huge success of its retail business. Last year alone, the Cupertino company’s 377 stores around the world racked up sales totaling an impressive $16 billion.

Source : digitaltrends[dot]com