Apple To Close Stonebriar, Willow Bend Locations; Will Open New Store At Galleria Dallas
(CBSDFW.COM) - The crowds at Stonebriar Centre in Frisco and The Shops at Willow Bend in Plano will have to find a new place for their Apple needs. The company has confirmed that it will close down its two locations in Collin County while also opening up a new store at Galleria Dallas.
The tech giant also plans to upgrade their other North Texas stores at Northpark Center, Knox Street in Dallas and Southlake. There has been no word on plans for the store in Fort Worth at University Park Village.
Employees at the closing stores will be offered jobs at other locations, according to Apple.
In a statement to CBS 11, the company said:
"We're making a major investment in our stores in Texas, including significant upgrades to NorthPark Center, Southlake and Knox Street. With a new Dallas store coming to the Dallas Galleria this April, we've made the decision to consolidate stores and close Apple Stonebriar and Apple Willow Bend. All employees from those stores will be offered positions at the new Dallas store or other Apple locations."
Although a reason for the closures was not given, Apple news sites 9to5Mac and Macrumors report the stores are closing in order for the company to protect itself from patent trolls. The two Collin County stores are located in the Eastern District of Texas which is a well-known area where patent trolls are able to file their lawsuits, according to the two reports.
A patent troll is a company that holds one or more patents in order to profit off of lawsuits rather than producing its own goods or services.
While Apple has said the new Galleria Dallas location is set to open in April, the company has not yet confirmed when the two Collin County stores will close.