Apple closes its New York city stores to shoppers after Covid spike

Apple is temporarily closing more of its physical stores due to Covid-19 fears, but trying a new approach of letting customers pickup items bought online. — REUTERS

Apple Inc. has closed its major New York City retail stores – including its Fifth Avenue, SoHo, Grand Central and World Trade Center locations – to shoppers because of rising Covid-19 cases.

The closures include 16 stores across New York, with Upper West Side, West 14th Street, Staten Island and Bronx locations all affected. The temporary move also includes stores in Huntington Station and Manhasset.

Apple has temporarily closed many stores in recent weeks as it copes with the highly contagious omicron variant, but it’s trying a different approach with the New York shutdown.

The company is still letting customers place orders online and pick them up at the stores. Shoppers won’t be able to enter the store to browse or purchase anything onsite, and technical support from the Genius Bar won’t be available.

"We regularly monitor conditions, and we will adjust our health measures to support the well-being of customers and employees,” Apple said Monday in a statement. "We remain committed to a comprehensive approach for our teams that combines regular testing with daily health checks, employee and customer masking, deep cleaning and paid sick leave.”

Covid cases have spiked to all-time highs in New York, with the state reporting tens of thousands of new cases a day.

Apple also has closed additional retail stores outside of New York in recent days, such as some locations in Los Angeles. That includes its downtown Los Angeles Tower Theatre store.

Apple didn’t say when its New York locations would reopen to shoppers. The company has also temporarily shut its Carnegie Library store in Washington, DC, and some locations in Ohio, Texas, Georgia and Florida. Its Regent Street store in London has temporarily closed as well. – Bloomberg