Apple: America's Best Retailer

Jerry Useem summarizes Apple’s unlikely rise as a retailer for Fortune. With sales at its New York store running a staggering $4,000 per square foot (50% higher than Tiffany’s), Apple is the best retailer in America. 

First Apple tested and tested its concept with mockups. Then, by limiting product offerings, cutting clutter, and copying the hotel concept of a concierge, Apple has become a surprisingly able and not so surprisingly innovative retailer. (More Steve Jobs stories.)