Apple's first reseller, located in Minneapolis, close for good this March 29.
According to TwinCities, the reseller was going under since it was receiving stiff competition from aggressive vendors. It said that the employees were shocked when they heard the news. The reseller employs 75 employees, the report said.
CNET said that reseller would close after 37 years of selling Apple products. It said that the closure of the first reseller is indicative of the electronic retail industry that is facing stiff competition from online stores.
"It happened very quickly. It was very emotional but very nice. We have a lot of really nice people who work here," product manager Fred Evans who was quoted by TwinCities, said.
FirstTech enjoyed excellent relation ties with Apple, who referred customers to the store in order to receive repairs for older Apple computers.
Slash Gear recounted that in the early days, Apple did not have paperwork with its sale. FirstTech had taken one of its older contracts, scratched its name off and added Apple's name to complete the deal.
Ironically, the advent of Apple Store was one of contributing factors to the reseller's demise. An Apple Store opened in 2010 just a few blocks away from FirstTech. Although FirstTech weathered the 1990s, when Apple was staring at closure and the 2008 economic crisis, the present economic competition has proved too much.
TwinCities said that the reseller which operated under various monikers had also diversified into education, technological consulting and repairs to stay in business. FirstTech would also set up Windows servers for its clients.
The news of closure has been an emotional blow to clients and owners alike.
Evans said, "The person who bought that first Apple II also bought our first Lisa (computer) and our first Macintosh. To this day, he is still our customer,"
