On September 22, the iPhone 15 series went on sale in a number of priority markets, including Thailand and Singapore, the two Tier 1 markets closest to Vietnam. Previously, Singapore was often a familiar address for Vietnamese iPhone traders, and last year, Thailand also sold the device on the same day as Singapore, the US, Japan, Hong Kong, etc. Before the opening day, there were often long lines of people lining up in front of Apple Stores to be able to buy the device early the next morning.
A group of Vietnamese people were present at the Apple Store in Iconsiam (Thailand) on the evening of September 21.
However, Apple has become increasingly strict in managing the opening time of sales to prevent traders from "holding on to goods" while those with real needs cannot own the device or are forced to pay more. In 2022, many people encountered difficulties in Singapore when staff and security at the store dispersed the crowd gathered in front of the Apple Store and only allowed them to return in the early hours of the next morning.
This year, the situation has been reduced for various reasons, although on September 21, many groups of Vietnamese customers went to Thailand and Singapore to prepare for the launch of the iPhone 15. According to a survey by Thanh Nien in Thailand, where there are 2 Apple Stores located in the capital Bangkok, the store in the Iconsiam shopping mall was quieter, with no queues. Many groups of Vietnamese people were present here at different times of the day, some said that the store had issued queue numbers to those who had successfully placed orders on the Apple Thailand website since the afternoon of September 21.
Apple Store at Iconsiam shopping mall (Thailand) on the evening of September 21
Tuan Anh (Cau Giay, Hanoi) said he arrived in Thailand in the morning and quickly arrived at Iconsiam Center, but when he arrived at the store and checked the online order made in Vietnam earlier, he found out that the payment process for the iPhone 15 Pro Max had failed. "The store manager said I had to call the online support department to process it, but I decided to cancel the order and come back tomorrow to buy it directly, hoping for luck," Tuan Anh shared.
The manager also confirmed that he could not provide any further support and would not commit to having the product in stock for customers who had not pre-ordered. This was also the situation that happened in 2022 when Thailand first opened early sales of the iPhone 14 series, Apple Stores only allowed pre-order customers to pick up the product and did not sell it to walk-in customers until the afternoon of the same day.
Apple Store staff at World Center (Thailand) prepare for the opening day of iPhone 15 series
At the Apple Store at the World Center shopping mall (Thailand), there was a group of people still waiting in front of the door even though it was late at night and it was raining heavily since the afternoon, most of them were from Vietnam. But just like at Iconsiam, the number of people selling hand-carried iPhones was not much, but users who wanted to own the device early, or a group of technology reviewers who came to film videos and report on the opening event, as well as "hands-on" the product early to serve their following community.
People waiting in the rain for the iPhone to open for sale at the World Center shopping mall (Thailand) on the night of September 21.
In Singapore, in front of the Apple Store on Orchard Road, there was still a long line of people waiting, security guards had to put up barriers and signs marking the queue in both English and Vietnamese, but it was much smaller than in previous years. Minh Thanh, a young Vietnamese person who was there, said that the store had given out wristbands to those who arrived early and only those with wristbands were allowed to wait in line in front of the store.
However, having a bracelet does not mean that the buyer is sure to get the device because it depends on the amount of equipment the store has available. If it is their turn to buy but the desired product is no longer available, they will still have to go home empty-handed. "Some people are reselling this bracelet for 500 - 600 SGD (Singapore currency, about 11 million VND)," Thanh added. But no one dares to buy because the bracelet does not guarantee availability.
Wristbands for people queuing to buy iPhone 15 in Singapore
According to a person who has been queuing in Singapore for many years, in previous sales, each store hired more people to come to the front of the Apple Store to buy as many devices as possible and bring them to Vietnam on the first day. At that time, the sales in Singapore were far from Vietnam, so hand-carried iPhones still attracted customers, and the job brought in big profits.
"In the past two years, it has been shortened by 3 weeks (2022) and now it is only 1 week (2023), so the risk of loss is very high if it cannot be sold on the first day, so this year I decided not to invest in this form anymore," this person shared. This year, he was in Thailand just to buy an iPhone 15 Pro Max early for personal use and to see how the atmosphere here is compared to previous years.
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