By Kim Velsey 5/16 3:12pm

Red Carpet Real Estate

The exact same staircase used in Apple stores.

Sinatra’s Storied Penthouse Snagged By Chinese Scion

Frank Sinatra’s old duplex at 530 East 72nd Street finally got under someone’s skin. And this despite a “meticulous” renovation in recent years that included the installation of the exact same staircase as the one in the Apple stores and some other rather hideous unique design choices.

The New York Post reports that the “glittering grotto in the sky”—as Andy Warhol once referred to the Sinatra-era party pad—is in contract to the daughter of a Chinese technology tycoon. Maybe she found the Apple staircase homey? Read More

By Matt Chaban 7/30/12 12:03pm

Big Apple

A shady deal! (Getty)

Comptroller Takes a Bite Out of MTA: Apple Got Too Sweet a Deal on Grand Central Store

Apple has been one of the hottest companies on the planet for going on a decade now, and that includes its retail stores. That glass cube on Fifth Avenue is perhaps the architectural icon of the city this century.

When The Observer learned that Apple was thinking of bringing its biggest iStore to Grand Central Terminal last year, it was viewed as a coup for both the company and the MTA—could there be a more desirable shop in a more desirable location? The fanfare that greeted the store’s opening rivaled that of an Apple product launch, with lines for days.

But then it was revealed that Apple was not paying a share of its profits to the MTA, as every other retailer at Grand Central does. The MTA insisted it was a good deal, but State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli promised an investigation last fall, and he has concluded in a new audit [PDF] that Apple got a sweetheart deal that is rotten for the MTA and tax payers. Read More

By Kat Stoeffel 3/16/12 2:40pm

Shattered Ira Glass

mikedaisey

This American Life Retracts Apple Factory Story; Author Mike Daisey Pulls a John D’Agata

PRI’s This American Life has retracted its most popular broadcast ever, “Mr. Daisey Goes to the Apple Factory,” because it contains “significant fabrications,” host and executive producer Ira Glass announced today. An excerpt of Mike Daisey’s one-man show The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs, it has been downloaded 888,000 times and streamed another 206,000. Read More

By Matt Chaban 2/06/12 10:21am

Apple Kool-Aid

Dig in!

Apple Juices Grand Central: Sales Spill Over Into Surrounding Shops

The new Apple store in Grand Central Terminal is a lovely, understated project in one of the city’s premier public spaces.

All the same, some sour apples have been complaining that the Cult of Steve has been paying below market rents for its space, leading to an investigation by the state. The M.T.A. counters that Apple is still paying more than the previous tenant, and its arrival means bigger revenues across Grand Central, given Apple’s appeal. This latter bet appears to be paying off. Read More

By Matt Chaban 1/18/12 10:37am

Apple Kool-Aid

Cornering Queens?

iQueens: Second Outer Borough Apple Store Won’t Be in Brooklyn?

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz has been stamping his feet for years over his desire to land the holy grail of retailers: an Apple Store. After all, the M.T.A. bent over backwards to bringing a glowing Temple of Jobs into Grand Central. But it looks like Marty can forget about it, as Apple may be opening its next outer borough outlet in Queens County, not Kings County. Read More

By Daniel Edward Rosen 12/07/11 2:30pm

power broker

Robert Cohen.

Robert Cohen / Robert K. Futterman

As Soho continues its 20-year transformation from bohemian enclave to luxury retail bazaar, brands like Apple and Uniqlo have added to the neighborhood’s near impenetrable aura of luxury and glitz by converting old spaces into fashionable shopping destinations.

But simply boasting a Soho address isn’t always enough for some retailers.To M.A.C. Cosmetics, which operated a storefront on 113 Spring Street for more than 15 years, foot traffic appeared enviously higher throughout the nearby Broadway corridor.

“They were definitely leaving some money on the table by not having all the footfall that Broadway provides,” said Robert Cohen, 39, a Robert K. Futterman & Associates retail broker who represented M.A.C. Cosmetics in its move earlier this year to Broadway. Read More

By Emily Witt 12/07/11 1:21pm

Print to Digital

A picture taken on November 8, 2011 in P

Justice Department Investigates Publishers for E-Book Price Fixing

At a congressional hearing today, the Justice Department’s anti-trust authorities confirmed they are investigating the way publishers price electronic books for possible violations, reports The Wall Street Journal. In what’s known as the agency model, publishers set the price of books and allow stores like Apple and Amazon to take a 30 percent cut. This differs from the wholesale model used for print books, where publishers set a retail price that bookstores can choose to ignore. Read More