Apple Stores are known for their beautiful, minimalist glass facades – an iconic look that has become synonymous with the company's retail side. In fact, a number of the Mac maker's retail outlets have earned top architectural honors.
But at least one person isn't so impressed. Eighty-three-year-old Evelyn Paswall failed to notice that a store in Manhasset, New York was actually fronted by thick glass panes. She was approaching the store to return an iPhone when she ran smack into the see-through door and broke her nose. She is suing Apple for $1 million, crying negligence on Apple's part for its failure to properly mark its crystal-clear exterior, rendering it unsafe for elderly shoppers.
"Apple wants to be cool and modern and have the type of architecture that would appeal to the tech crowd," Paswall's attorney Derek T. Smith told the New York Post. "But on the other hand, they have to appreciate the danger that this high-tech modern architecture poses to some people."
Whoever was responsible with keeping the windows smudge-free was obviously doing their job. However, Paswall is calling for Apple to add to the doors of its stores identifying marks that would be more noticeable to older people.
"There were no markings on the glass or they were inadequate," Smith continued. "My client is an octogenarian. She sees well, but she did not see any glass."
But Apple seems to be going for a seamless look. Over the summer, it carried out a massive $6.7 million renovation of the facade of its Fifth Avenue location in Manhattan, replacing 90 glass panels that comprised the store's iconic glass cube with just 15 larger sheets.
Recently Apple was awarded a design patent for one of its Shanghai stores. Located under the Pearl Tower, the store features a cylindrical glass tower with the glowing white Apple logo floating inside. It looks similar to the Fifth Avenue store, though the Shanghai location is marked by a moat around the entrance.
One of Apple's more recent major store openings was in New York City's Grand Central Terminal. Occupying 23,000 square feet, it is one of Apple's biggest retail outlets in the world.
For more, see the 7 Apple Stores to Visit Before You Die slideshow below.