From Bangkok to NYC: 5 of the coolest Apple stores around the world

Since the first Apple store opened in Virginia in 2001, Apple has opened more than 500 brick-and-mortar retail locations across 25 countries.

The settings for those stores can vary greatly, from shopping malls to Manhattan's trendy SoHo shopping district. But in several cases, the tech giant co-founded by Steve Jobs (who always placed an emphasis on pleasing aesthetic designs) has aimed to ensure that the look of the store is just as appealing to customers as the company hopes the products inside will be.

In fact, Jobs reportedly once turned to billionaire Bernard Arnault, chairman of LVMH (which owns luxury brands like Louis Vuitton and Dior) for advice before opening the first Apple stores. And Jobs was eventually behind the push to hire award-winning architects like the firms Bohlin Cywinski Jackson and Foster + Partners to design Apple's stores around the world.

As a result, several Apple stores around the world now stand out as much for their architectural features (think waterfalls and a floating sphere) as for the products they sell. Here are five of the coolest-looking Apple stores around the world:

One of the newest Apple store locations made waves when it opened its doors in September. That's because Apple's third store to open in Singapore is built inside a "floating sphere" that sits on the water in the city's Marina Bay.

The all-glass dome building is 100 feet in diameter and is fitted with sunshade rings around the dome to regulate the light that comes in. And, as it is surrounded by water, the store itself is accessible by a nearly 150-foot underground tunnel.

The home of the "Cube," this below ground store reopened its doors in September 2019 after closing two years earlier for renovations, including a spiral staircase and skylights.

One of Apple's flagship retail stores, the location on Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan opened in 2006 and has become a city landmark, drawing tourists and shoppers to the store's entrance: a 32-foot glass cube. It's also the only Apple store that remains open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Another recent addition, Apple opened its second retail store in Thailand's capital city in July. Located in Bangkok's Ratchaprasong shopping district, Apple Central World features a distinctive design, with a two-story, circular glass enclosure with a "cantilevered Tree Canopy roof" that rests on a wooden pillar at the heart of the building.

Opened in 2018, Apple built this store in the middle of a public plaza in the heart of Milan. Similar to the Fifth Avenue location in New York, this Milan location's most striking element is an all-glass entrance. In this case, though, the entrance is a glass rectangle with its own waterfall.

Opened in April 2017, Apple's second Dubai store sports a 186-foot curved balcony that offers impressive views of both the Dubai Fountain and the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest skyscraper. The balcony even features 37.5-foot-high motorized "Solar Wings," designed by Foster + Partners, which open and close depending on the weather.

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