Apple Is Opening Stores In China At Breakneck Speed
APApple will open five new Apple Stores in China in less than five weeks, according to a Xinhua News Agency report.
Angela Ahrendts, Apple's senior vice president of retail and online stores, told Xinhua the stores would be ready by Chinese New Year, which is on February 19 this year.
Apple's decision to open new stores before Chinese New Year is anything but arbitrary.
Chinese New Year has turned into a shopping holiday in recent years.
China is becoming Apple's largest market for iPhones, according to recent estimates by UBS.
Barclays expects the iPhone 6 Plus to do particularly well in China this spring due to pent up demand for it there.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has said the company plans to have a total of 40 Apple Stores in China by the end of 2016.
It will have 20 after construction on this batch of stores is finished next month.