The Apple Store is the most profitable retailer in America, generating an average of $5,600 per square foot and attracting more than 20,000 visitors a week.

In the decade since Steve Jobs and former head of retail, Ron Johnson, decided to reimagine the retail experience, the Apple Store not only reimagined and reinvented retail, it blew up the model entirely and started from scratch. In his research for The Apple Experience, Carmine discovered ten things that the Apple Store can teach any business in any industry to be more successful:

1. Stop selling stuff. When Steve Jobs first started the Apple Store he asked, "How do we enrich people's lives?"  
2. Enrich lives. The vision behind the Apple Store is "enrich lives," the first two words on a wallet-sized credo card employees are encouraged to carry.
3. Hire for smiles. The soul of the Apple Store is in its people. They are hired, trained, motivated and taught to create magical and memorable moments for their customers.
4. Celebrate diversity. Apple hires people who reflect the diversity of their customers.  
5. Unleash inner genius. Teach your customers something they never knew they could do before, and they'll reward you with their loyalty.
6. Empower employees. I spent one hour talking to an Apple Store specialist about kids, golf, and my business. We spent about ten minutes talking about the product (a MacBook Air).
7. Sell the benefit. Apple Store specialists are taught to sell the benefit behind products and to customize those benefits for the customer.  
8. Follow the steps of service. The Apple Store teaches its employees to follow five steps in each and every interaction.  
9. Create multisensory experiences. People enjoy being able to see, touch, and play with products. The sense of touch helps create an emotional connection with a product.
10. Appeal to the buying brain. Clutter forces the brain to consume energy. Create uncluttered environments instead.