The Apple Watch will be released later this month, and a company memo details plans to offer big discounts to staff members. CEO Tim Cook wrote of an “Employee Purchase Plan” which will see staffers given a 50% discount on any Apple Watch or Apple Watch Sport.
Discounts to encourage staff to become brand ambassadors
Staff will receive a discount on their Apple Watch for 90 days beginning this Friday. The watches will sell at varying price points, depending on the model and style of strap. The Apple Watch Sport will start at $349, while the normal Apple Watch will cost $549. Higher up the range, the Edition starts at $10,000 and can carry a price tag of $17,000 if you choose the 18 carat rose gold model.
The memo did not state whether staff would receive the hefty discount on more expensive models.
Regular customers will be able to visit 400 retail locations around the world in order to have a fitting for their Apple Watch before the product launches on April 24, when it will also be available to preorder.
Impending launch of important new product line
Staff around the world will be able to take advantage of their discount as the Apple Watch becomes available in their country of work. Cook presumably wants staff to feel included in the launch. “We want you to share in that experience right alongside them,” he wrote in the memo.
Later in the company missive Cook went on to thank Apple staff for their efforts in helping company products reach consumers, and revealed that over 1,000 Apple Watch apps were submitted in just four days after the company started to receive submissions. “The rate of submissions has only been climbing since then,” he continued.
The Apple Watch marks a significant new venture for Apple, and will be the company’s first entirely new product line since the launch of the iPad in 2010. Some analysts have questioned whether CEO Tim Cook is capable of continuing the culture of innovation which was the hallmark of the company under sadly deceased former CEO Steve Jobs, and the Apple Watch is a major test for Cook.
