Bangkok Apple Store in planning

Multiple reports from Thailand tip the opening of the first Bangkok Apple Store in 2018.

The move began as a rumour when recruitment advertisements appeared in the country seeking creative, expert, “genius”, managers, store leaders and business leader roles in what – based on similar advertising in other markets – could only mean a search for qualified staff for an official Apple store. Advertisements also invited applications for the two-year Apple Store Leader Program, according to MacRumors.com.

The ads added credibility to rumours published in Thailand earlier this year which tipped the first Bangkok Apple Store would open at the IconSiam shopping centre, currently being built on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, by Siam Piwat, which also owns the Siam Paragon, Siam Discovery and Siam Center malls in the heart of Bangkok. Of those, only Siam Paragon would seem to have sufficient space to host a flagship Apple store, although it would lack the bold street frontage Apple prefers for its retail outlets. IconSiam will feature a row of two-story brand maisons which, while previously earmarked for luxury European fashion brands, could include a distinctive Apple store with bold frontage, such as that used in Apple’s Orchard Road store in Singapore, (pictured above), or its Hong Kong stores, one of which is built on an overpass spanning two buildings across a busy street.

Apple is also working on its retail debut in Macau and Seoul in this part of the world, following the successful (but delayed) opening of the Singapore store in May.