Microsoft To Open Swank Flagship Retail Store In The Big Apple

Microsoft's plans to build open a flagship store in New York has been in the works for about five years, and at some point in 2015, it'll finally become a reality. Current plans are to take over Fendi, located at 677 Fifth Ave., which is about five blocks away from Apple's flagship store at 767 Fifth Avenue.

David Porter, Microsoft's Corporate VP for retail stores says, "As our first flagship store, it will serve as the centerpiece of our Microsoft Stores experience. This is a goal we've had since day one - we were only waiting for the right location. And now we have it." The right location does come at a cost, though.

(Credit: Cassandra Giraldo / The Wall Street Journal)

The Wall Street Journal notes that as of the second quarter, the average rent price for this retail district came in at $2,749 per square foot. That's ridiculously high, but this is an area that attracts locals and tourists alike, and it's an area where people like to spend money; the Surface Pro and Xbox One might not look so expensive to someone after they spend $200 for a t-shirt.

What remains to be seen is if Microsoft will follow Apple in its footsteps and make its flagship NY store a 24/7/365 operation. It might very well have to. Nonetheless, Microsoft is promising that its flagship store is going to be "much more than a Microsoft Store", and all we can do at this point and wait and see what it means by that.

Let's just hope Microsoft has learned its lesson from this!