The first weekend of fall began with a fresh harvest of new and expanded Apple Stores. Projects in Mexico City; Fukuoka, Japan; Skokie, Illinois; Columbia, Maryland; and Shanghai, China completed on September 27 and 28, contributing to a grand total of fifteen significant Apple Store openings and expansions for the month.

Apple’s four latest upgraded stores arrive less than one day after the second Apple Store in Mexico opened its doors to the Polanco district of Mexico City. Each upgrade represents a move from an existing classic storefront or significant remodeling work to add a community Forum and video wall for Today at Apple creative sessions.

More expansions and store openings are still scheduled for completion before the end of the year. If you attend a store opening, spot something interesting, or attend a great Today at Apple session, we’d love to see and share your photos.

Apple Old Orchard

Skokie, Illinois’s Apple Old Orchard moved from an inconspicuous space near the center of Westfield Old Orchard to a proud, standout storefront in Nordstrom Ct. The new store greets customers with a generous planked overhang and natural stone walls, signature design elements in many of Apple’s latest outdoor locations.

The store’s glass facade is split by an equally-transparent revolving door. Doors in this style are relatively uncommon for Apple Stores, but have also been installed at nearby locations in Deer Park and Chicago’s Michigan Avenue, presumably due to the chilly climate of northern Illinois.

Old Orchard’s original store closed on September 27 after over 15 years of service. The location was among an early group built with the stainless steel facade that later became synonymous with Apple Stores during the mid 2000s.

Photos courtesy of Larry Johnson Jr.

Apple Columbia

Apple Columbia is the third of five stores in Maryland to be redesigned with Apple’s latest aesthetic after locations in Annapolis and at Montgomery Mall. The new store replaces a compact space that opened just a few months before the original iPhone was revealed.

Apple is still located on the second level at The Mall in Columbia, now placed between Banana Republic and Ann Taylor.

Photo via Weibo.

Apple Shanghai iapm

In order to upgrade existing locations for the full Today at Apple experience without disrupting service, Apple has been remodeling several of its multilevel stores — Causeway Bay, Omotesando, Parc Central, Amsterdam, Puerta del Sol, and Canton Road — floor by floor. The latest to complete is Apple Shanghai iapm. 

Upgrades began in June, when the store’s second floor was sealed off to add Avenue display shelving and a green wall. In late July, construction work moved to the first floor and Apple decorated the store with one of its illustrated logos used at October 2018’s Special Event in Brooklyn. 

The completed store retains its signature glass spiral staircase, but adds a video wall and Forum near the mall’s entrance. It’s the seventh classic Apple Store in Mainland China to receive a Today at Apple upgrade.

Earlier This Month

Apple retail’s global glow-up reached eleven other stores throughout September. Several more locations received lighter upgrades with a video wall. Photos and details from earlier openings this month:

September 28

  • Apple Fukuoka

September 27

  • Apple Antara

September 20

  • Apple Fifth Avenue
  • Apple Omotesando, Highland Village, Mall of America, Bridgewater, and Parc Central

September 14

  • Apple Oxmoor and The Woodlands

September 7

  • Apple Marunouchi

September 6

  • Apple Altamonte