It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness. It was the spring of 2001—a year that had not yet turned sour beyond belief—in which Apple chose to open its very first two retail stores. These two would be the first of some 25 stores opening later in the year.
In that age of uncertainty, many thought Apple’s dip into retail waters was an act of supreme foolishness. But as Apple is wont, they did it anyway. The choice turned out to be a wise one indeed.
In Virginia, some 500 people lined up in the pre-dawn hours of the morning of May 19 for a chance to be the earliest inside the first Apple retail store open to the public. The queue of Apple die-hards grew throughout the day until it reached over 1000. Security guards were on hand to make sure the throng did not violate fire codes regarding maximum occupancy.
