Apple Inc. is preparing to open its eighth store in Shanghai this month, adding to its largest retail network outside the US at a time iPhone sales in China are slowing.
The new retail space, Apple Jingan, is located in the center of the city that already hosts the largest number of Apple stores in the Chinese mainland. Opening on March 21, it will be one of 47 locations across the country of 1.4 billion.
Cupertino, California-based Apple’s iPhone has seen sales slump in China since the debut of its latest iteration in September. Even so, the country remains a vital market with the world’s largest smartphone consumer base and potential for growing sales of ecosystem accessories like the Apple Watch.
The new Shanghai store is part of a broader expansion by Apple that will see it revitalize its retail operations with new and remodeled locations. The company plans dozens of new, relocated or refreshed stores over the next few years, Bloomberg reported in June.
To further boost its presence in China, Apple announced on Tuesday it will expand an existing lab in Shanghai and open a new one in Shenzhen. The new entity in Shenzhen will focus on researching and testing products including iPhones and Vision Pro headsets, the company said.
“At Apple, we are proud we can foster deep relations in China, and we are expanding our world-class facilities here,” Apple’s Managing Director of Greater China Isabel Ge Mahe said in a statement.
