Microsoft’s upcoming Sydney flagship store is the first Microsoft store outside of North America, and only the second flagship store opened by Microsoft. The Sydney store is breaking new ground for the tech giant in its fight to regain the consumer cachet it has lost to the likes of Apple in recent years, and if it goes well it could spark a country-wide rollout of stores and further overseas openings.
The Microsoft Flagship Store in Sydney will feature all locally available Microsoft hardware products and will act as the centrepiece to the Microsoft store experience in Australia. Microsoft general manager of international retail stores, Travis Walter, told The Australian Financial Review that Sydney had been on Microsoft’s radar for a few years because of a known appetite for tech products among Australians. “Microsoft’s online business within Australia is one of the fastest-growing markets in the world for us,” he said. “From a performance perspective it’s in the top five markets in the world, and it has the highest conversion rate of any of the websites.”
Since the first Microsoft store opened in 2009 it has opened 25 a year; 80 per cent of Americans are within 30 kilometres of a shop. The Sydney store will look very similar to Microsoft’s new New York flagship store, opening on October 26 US time. It will be multi-storey, have polished wooden floors, display screens covering the walls, interactive displays and a help desk for customers wanting support with their Microsoft products. Gaming has been given a large foot print for launch with two dedicated Xbox One zones, and an additional gaming wall in the first-of-its-kind Community Theatre. The store currently boasts all of the available Xbox One consoles and bundles available through their online store as well as a variety of games.
