Apple Continues Store Closures Amid Covid-19 Spike, Now Shuttering 14 Locations in Florida

Apple is continuing with store closures in areas that are experiencing significant spikes in coronavirus infections, and tomorrow, 14 retail locations in Florida will be shut down.

The Galleria, The Falls, Aventura, Lincoln Road, Dadeland, Brickell City Centre, Wellington Green, Boca Raton, The Gardens Mall, Millenia, Florida Mall, Altamonte, International Plaza, and Brandon will close tomorrow, and customers with devices being repaired at those locations should initiate pickups today.

Apple today closed seven retail stores located in the Houston, Texas area, where coronavirus cases are surging. Highland Village, First Colony Mall, Houston Galleria, Memorial City, Willowbrook Mall, Baybrook, and the Woodlands in Texas are now closed with no planned reopening date.

Last week, Apple shuttered stores in Florida, Arizona, North Carolina, and South Carolina, even as it worked to reopen stores in other locations across the United States. With the additional store closures in Florida, just two stores in the state will remain open -- St. Johns Town Center in Jacksonville and University Town Center in Sarasota.

U.S. Apple Stores began reopening in May, and ahead of when store closures restarted last week, more than 150 of the 271 stores in the United States had reopened. When stores started opening again, Apple's retail store chief Deirdre O'Brien made it clear that Apple would not hesitate to close stores again if additional outbreaks demanded it.

"These are not decisions we rush into - and a store opening in no way means that we won't take the preventative step of closing it again should local conditions warrant," O'Brien said.

Apple's decisions on store closures and store openings are based on data evaluation, such as local cases, near and long-term trends, and guidance from national and local health officials. Apple is continuing with store reopenings in areas where Covid-19 infections are dropping. In the Greater Toronto Area, for example, Apple retail stores are opening up on Monday, June 29, which will mean all stores in Canada will be up and running.

In stores that have reopened, Apple is implementing safety measures that include mandatory masks, social distancing, frequent cleaning, temperature checks, and more. In some locations, stores are open only for repairs and curb-side pickup, while others are open but with a limited number of people allowed in at one time.