…then join ‘em. Sony stores have been in existence for around several decades, but they have been bland looking places…until now. On March 13th in Nagoya Japan, Sony opened the doors to its first Apple inspired Sony Store.

From its glassy exterior, to its black and white interior design, Sony’s premiere 167 square meter, 2-story shop clearly takes a few cues from Apple Stores (consider imitation to be a homage). Sony, for its own sakes, is hoping that its urbane center will restore some of the luster that the company has lost. Once considered “high-end” and innovative, many of Sony’s big ideas have utterly fallen flat: mini-discs that failed in North America, the PSP go, the loss of television market share to Samsung and other emerging companies, and the somewhat lukewarm Playstation 3 reception, etc., have all contributed to Sony’s mammoth financial losses for consecutive years.

Sony’s store mimicks Apple’s strategy of delivering not just a retail outlet, but an experience and a gathering hotspot for customers and onlookers. I would rather visit Sony’s digs instead of an Apple store because there are notably greater varieties of merchandise at the former –Apple does not sell televisions, Blu-Ray players, gaming consoles, or cameras…at least not yet.

Source: AV Watch