Apple retail employees are reportedly holding an overnight tonight which will be used to construct express lanes that will make shopping easier during the busy holiday period. The lanes provide customers with quick and easy access to popular products and accessories, and are staffed by several Apple Specialists.
Apple has used express lanes to cope with a surge in demand during busy periods before, so their introduction in the run up to Christmas is nothing new. What’s interesting is Apple launched its new Apple Store app for iOS earlier this week, which allows customers to checkout their own purchases in its retail stores. The new feature is designed to make Apple retail shopping quicker and easier, and could eliminate the need for express lanes.
However, as we noted in our hands-on yesterday, customers cannot checkout purchases that require a serial number to be registered, such as iPods, iPhones, iPads, and Macs — which the express lanes are likely to serve.
The company is also planning a number of overnights in the coming weeks, according to sources for 9to5Mac, which are likely to see Apple store staff erect holiday marketing materials like banners, easel posters, device screen-savers, and more.
Apple uses an express lane permanently in its new Hong Kong store because it is so busy — as shown in the image above from ifoAppleStore.
