Apple Watch is slated to hit the shelf in Seoul Korea on Friday.
With Apple’s smartphone market share in Korea jumping to around 30%, Apple watch is expected to have a significant impact on the Korean market. According to industry sources, Frisbee Myeongdong and Boontheshop Cheongdam will be opening at 7 am on June 26, three to four hours earlier than usual.
Apple will also launch its luxury smartwatch model in Korea. The 18k gold Apple Watch Edition, which costs 10 million won, will be available only in Frisbee Myeongdong and Boontheshop Cheongdam.
A Boontheshop official said, “Apple Watch comes in three models including Watch Sport, and Boontheshop Cheongdam will be the only place where you can find the entire models.” “Apple’s head office made this decision, thinking that Apple Watch is not just a mobile device, but it also functions as a fashion item”. Especially, most expensive and fashion-oriented Watch Edition will be only available in Boontheshop Cheongdam, with the exception of Frisbee Myeongdong.
In the two stores, visitors can try on Apple watches. Frisbee staff will also offer customers a 10-20 minute presentation about Apple Watch.
Apple also started to air its first Apple Watch TV commercial. The commercial only features simple images that show its materials (gold, stainless steel) and functions (text message notification, fitness track) with the short copy of “The watch is here.” Such a simple ad is characteristic of Apple.
“Apple Watch has drawn much attention from the market. On top of that, it can be purchased at offline stores. This is a boon for Apple,” an industry source said. “The key is whether Apple Watch can expand the smartwatch market base in Korea.”
Thanks to Apple’s brand image, Apple Watch has successfully gained popularity, despite the initial struggle to keep up with the demand.
Slice Intelligence, a research firm, estimates that 2.79 million Apple Watch units have been sold in the U.S. in just two months since its launch on April 24, taking more than 50% of the U.S. smartwatch market (4-5 million units).
Apple is concentrating its full energy on boosting the sales of Apple Watch. Aiming at enlarging the market, it will launch Apple Watch in additional countries such as Korea, Italia and Mexico. Moreover, it has expanded its sales channels, making it available both online and offline. In September, the company will release Apple Watch OS 2, which does not require iPhone to build an Apple Watch app.
With Apple Watch about to hit the market, much attention is on Samsung’s Gear A, the smartwatch that will be launched in the second half of the year. As the market share of Tizen Os is on a decline, the market is closely watching how Samsung will respond to this. According to a research firm, Apple Watch will be available from June 26. It is estimated that Apple has sold about 7 million Apple Watch units since it was launched in the global market on April 24 2015.
The number is known to be more than three times the combined units sold of the six products that Samsung has launched since 2013. Strategy Analytics, a market research firm, forecasts that Apple Watch will take 54.8% of the smartwatch market this year, taking the top spot from Samsung Electronics.
To keep Apple from being the sole lead, Samsung is preparing a counterattack. The tech giant is going to launch the round-shaped smartwatch Gear A. Gear A, loaded with its mobile payment service SamSung Pay, is expected to be available from September 2015, along with Galaxy Note 5. Samsung is particularly worried about the recent decline of the market share of Tizen OS in the smartwatch market. The industry forecasts that Tizen will lose ground with the release of Apple Watch.
