Angela Ahrendts Promises Details on Apple's 'Back to School' Situation Next Week

As we noted earlier this week, Apple has yet to launch its annual "Back to School" promotion that in recent years has launched in early July and offered educational customers free $50-$100 Apple Store or iTunes/App Store gift cards with the purchase of a Mac or iOS device, in addition to the usual educational discount available on some products.

With the usual timeframe having come and gone and no signs of an imminent launch for the promotion, many have speculated Apple has decided to end the long-running program.

ahrendts_back_to_school
According to Consomac.fr [Google Translation], however, Apple retail chief Angela Ahrendts in her latest video message to store employees this week revealed that she will "share a little bit more insight" on the Back to School situation with them in next week's video.

I'm sure many of you are thinking also 'but is there anything else for Back to School'? Well, I need you to wait until next week's video and I'll share a little bit more insight with you then.

Ahrendts' comment does not confirm that the usual Back to School promotion will be launching in the near future, but the report notes her "enthusiastic tone" suggests the company will be offering something for customers.

Ahrendts is in Tokyo this week and recorded her weekly message from there, but the reason for her trip is unknown.

Top Rated Comments

Quu Avatar
115 months ago
Feels like she's making a lot of mistakes since taking over. The watch online only at launch, macbook online only at launch, no lines outside stores that many fans enjoy for new products, delayed back to school program etc
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WelshDog Avatar
115 months ago
Feels like she's making a lot of mistakes since taking over. The watch online only at launch, macbook online only at launch, no lines outside stores that many fans enjoy for new products, delayed back to school program etc
I don't think any of those things could be characterized as mistakes.
And most of the things you listed don't sound like decisions she would have made. She doesn't work in a vacuum. Any big change she plans to make has to be run by Tim and the gang.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AreanFSL Avatar
115 months ago
I suspect that the promotion might be 12 months of Apple Music or something like that. It's probably just taking some extra time to get the deals in place with the record companies.
That would be one sad promotion.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DanielSw Avatar
115 months ago
She sends weekly videos to the apple store employees?
If I was working at the store I'd find that really odd/patronising.
Doesn't seem very 'Apple like'
I think your comments are really odd. How else can she stay in touch with her thousands of employees? Patronizing? No way.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Simplicated Avatar
115 months ago
Why is that? That's a $120 value. That means it's worth more than the $100 Apple Store gift cards of the past.
Because with the gift card they used to give you, you could purchase anything to your heart's content. A $120 Apple Music subscription is great, but not everybody wants to be forced to be subscribed to it.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dagamer34 Avatar
115 months ago
Feels like she's making a lot of mistakes since taking over. The watch online only at launch, macbook online only at launch, no lines outside stores that many fans enjoy for new products, delayed back to school program etc
1) Honestly, anyone who's used 3rd party apps on the Watch knows that they aren't worth using because of the lag communicating the extension with the Watch itself. Fortunately, that's mostly fixed with watchOS 2 coming in the Fall.
2) MacBook launch - no longer an issue, no one will care or remember it
3) Lines - the lines were cute in the beginning, but I think they've become unruly and honestly make no sense in a world where pre-ordering items has been possible (i.e. forever). Sure, fans can camp outside if they want, but since the average person needs to work to make a living during the day, pre-orders should and *need* to be the preferred way to buy new Apple products.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Apple Announces 'Let Loose' Event on May 7 Amid Rumors of New iPads

Tuesday April 23, 2024 7:11 am PDT by
Apple has announced it will be holding a special event on Tuesday, May 7 at 7 a.m. Pacific Time (10 a.m. Eastern Time), with a live stream to be available on Apple.com and on YouTube as usual. The event invitation has a tagline of "Let Loose" and shows an artistic render of an Apple Pencil, suggesting that iPads will be a focus of the event. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
Apple Vision Pro Dual Loop Band Orange Feature 2

Apple Cuts Vision Pro Shipments as Demand Falls 'Sharply Beyond Expectations'

Tuesday April 23, 2024 9:44 am PDT by
Apple has dropped the number of Vision Pro units that it plans to ship in 2024, going from an expected 700 to 800k units to just 400k to 450k units, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Orders have been scaled back before the Vision Pro has launched in markets outside of the United States, which Kuo says is a sign that demand in the U.S. has "fallen sharply beyond expectations." As a...
iPhone 15 Pro FineWoven

Apple Reportedly Stops Production of FineWoven Accessories

Sunday April 21, 2024 6:03 am PDT by
Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories, according to the Apple leaker and prototype collector known as "Kosutami." In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kosutami explained that Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories due to its poor durability. The company may move to another non-leather material for its premium accessories in the future. Kosutami has revealed...
iOS 17 All New Features Thumb

iOS 17.5 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Sunday April 21, 2024 3:00 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 17.5 update for the iPhone includes only a few new user-facing features, but hidden code changes reveal some additional possibilities. Below, we have recapped everything new in the iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 beta so far. Web Distribution Starting with the second beta of iOS 17.5, eligible developers are able to distribute their iOS apps to iPhone users located in the EU...
iPad And Calculator App Feature

Apple Finally Plans to Release a Calculator App for iPad Later This Year

Tuesday April 23, 2024 9:08 am PDT by
Apple is finally planning a Calculator app for the iPad, over 14 years after launching the device, according to a source familiar with the matter. iPadOS 18 will include a built-in Calculator app for all iPad models that are compatible with the software update, which is expected to be unveiled during the opening keynote of Apple's annual developers conference WWDC on June 10. AppleInsider...