Apple’s downtown Portland store reopens Wednesday

Published 5:00 pm Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Apple reopens its downtown Portland store Wednesday, a little over two months after it closed during the early days of Oregon’s coronavirus outbreak. The company’s other Oregon stores, at the Bridgeport Village and Washington Square malls, remain closed indefinitely.

Apple won’t allow customers inside its downtown store, at least not yet. Instead, buyers must order their products online and pick them up in the doorway. Customers seeking repairs will have to drop their items off and return later.

“We are committed to reopening our stores in a very thoughtful manner with the health and safety of our customers and teams as our top priority, and we look forward to seeing our customers again soon,” Apple said in a written statement Tuesday.

Apple said last week that it has reopened 100 stores around the world and indicated this week that it is in the process of reopening 100 more. A few locations are allowing customers inside.

Unlike many states, Oregon allowed most businesses – including many retailers – to continue operating during the coronavirus outbreak, provided they took measures to ensure employees’ and customers safety. The state allowed all retailers to reopen on May 15, including boutiques, furniture stores and jewelry stores that had been required to close under the state’s stay-home order.

Apple and some other prominent retailers, including Nordstrom and Powell’s Books, had kept their Oregon stores closed voluntarily while adopting new procedures to guard against spreading the coronavirus.

Nordstrom and Powell’s downtown Portland stores remain closed, though both offer curbside pickup.

Apple says that whenever it does begin allowing customers inside its Oregon stores again, the company will require employees and customers to wear masks and maintain a two-meter distance (a little more than six feet) from one another.

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