Microsoft has long been playing catch-up with Apple in terms of physical stores. But now rumour has it that it wants to open a fancy new store on Fifth Avenue, just a couple of blocks from Apple’s iconic glass cube.
While Microsoft has over 50 stores in the US, it doesn’t have one in the high-end shopping district of Manhattan. But New York Daily News reports that it’s in talks to open one on Fifth Avenue. One of the most expensive shopping areas in the entire world, it’s also a short walk from the amazing glass construction that is Apple’s flagship store, which is just next to Central Park.
In the past, Microsoft has used a pop-up store in Times Square to launch its Surface tablet. But competing directly with Apple is perhaps no surprise; Microsoft has, after all, a habit of opening stores near those peddling iDevices. The only question mark rests more fundamentally over Microsoft’s future: it’s unclear how a flagship store sits with Microsoft’s changing hardware division — but maybe we’ll just have to wait and see. [New York Daily News via The Verge]