The next Microsoft and Apple battleground: Retail
This is set up almost too perfectly. We’re in the midst of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, retail sales are plummeting, consumer spending is way down and so what does Microsoft want to do? Open retail stores. Insert two paragraphs of punch-line here.
But I’m going to surprise you here and go the other way. I think this is actually a smart move by Microsoft - in theory, at least.
Now’s the time to buy
First of all, if you have the money (which Microsoft does), now’s the time to buy. That is to say that they can probably get some great deals on retail spaces around the country as stores go out of business and rents trend lower. Things could still get worse, but this is likely a much better time to be looking around for prime real estate than anytime in recent history.
But more importantly, for Microsoft’s actual products, a retail store could mean a better relationship with customers. Right now, I associate PCs with things that never work right in offices or things that never work right in the home (I just had to fix my dad’s PC). That’s not to say that all PCs are junk, but with such a huge market share, Microsoft’s software is running on a lot of systems that are junk. Maybe the systems are old, or maybe they’re just cheap. It’s a problem, one that certainly sticks in my mind and the mind of many others.
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