Apple has announced that it will open its new Apple Store in Istanbul, Turkey, tomorrow Friday, October 22. The new store is called Apple BaÄŸdat Caddesi and it will be Apple’s third branch in the economic heart of Turkey.
Apple says that the new store “blends local materials with the latest store design to create an open and fluid space for customers to explore Apple’s products and services”.
Apple’s senior vice president of Retail + People, Deirdre O’Brien said:
“With the opening of Apple BaÄŸdat Caddesi, we’re thrilled to build upon the deep and long-standing relationships we have with our customers in Turkey. We can’t wait to welcome the local community to our newest store in Istanbul and bring them the best of Apple.”
Apple also says that the store will host an AR exhibition developed by Tin Nguyen and Ed Cutting, alongside Turkish sound artist Oğuz Öner.
The tech giant says that visitors can use the iPhone 13 Pro to experience the AR technology with LiDAR and see ceramic vessels like the traditional art of paper marbling “Ebru”.
To celebrate the opening, Apple notes that it will debut a six-week Today at Apple program called Perspektif Istanbul that celebrates the city’s culture, creativity, and technology and is hosted by 20 local artists.
Here is the translation of the program’s description:
“Today at Apple and ATÖLYE present a program that brings together technology and creativity, proposes a new perspective, and celebrates urban culture with experience-oriented events. We invite everyone to meet with an inspiring community and discover their creativity in different fields of art, between October 22nd and December 5th.”
Apple is looking more and more to expand into the Middle East and Europe by opening a new store in Istanbul, the largest city in Europe and the most essential city in Turkey.
However, in the U.S, the company has been struggling with re-opening time and time again due to the novel COVID-19 pandemic. Last summer, the mask mandate returned at certain Apple Stores across the country, while the company closed its Charleston, South Carolina store after 20 cases were reported.