Accessibility and Convenience
Timber tables and seating come in various heights with ample width to accommodate wheelchairs and strollers. Small speakers embedded at each table offer assisted listening services for customers who are deaf or hard of hearing. The company also says it has hired 150 employees locally, adding they speak twelve languages collectively.
The WorldCenter store is also the first Miami location to offer a dedicated pickup counter for online customers to collect their purchases. "Today at Apple" programming is also available at this location, with a schedule of informative (and complimentary) sessions designed to help customers get the most out of their Apple devices. Upcoming workshops include an intro to navigating the iPhone or iPad and a guided tour teaching participants how to capture premier architecture and nature photos in Miami. Personal Apple devices are not needed to participate, as loaners are available.
Sustainability and Design
In keeping with the brand's existing stores, Apple Miami WorldCenter is carbon neutral and uses 100 percent renewable energy, but the downtown store has also introduced some new features.
The north and south ends of the store are almost entirely wall-to-wall glass capped with a tropical mural designed by Texas-based graphic artist Ryan Dean Sprague, who created the bespoke logo and artwork on an iPad. The placement of the glass (with recyclable aluminum accents) is intentional — it avoids the harsh light of sunrise while bathing the space in natural light throughout most of the day.
The store's meticulously selected landscaping is composed of foliage from across Latin America. Atop the building, a garden grows, providing a natural view of surrounding structures and collecting rainwater for reuse.
The store could have easily drawn aesthetic inspiration from famed Miami spots like Alfred Browning Parker's Woodsong home in Coconut Grove or the Brillhart House near the Miami River. Its interior is warm and welcoming, featuring wall-to-wall mass timber and bio-resin polymer crafted with regionally sourced stones embedded in the material. A mid-century-inspired nook provides a dedicated space for testing out the Vision Pro virtual reality headset.
Apple Miami WorldCenter Opening. 10 a.m. Friday, at 725 NE First Ave., Miami; 305-972-3954; apple.com.
