History Of Apple Inc.
Apple Inc. has been an icon in American industry over the last three decades. It was named the number one “world’s most admired company” by Fortune the last three consecutive years. Over the years, The Apple brand name has become synonymous with innovation. CEO Steve Jobs has done a remarkable job turning around the company that was near bankruptcy in 1996. As the name change from “Apple Computer” to “Apple Inc.” in 2007 suggests, Apple is no longer just a computer company. Both revenue and net income have soared in recent years, thanks to the iPod and the iPhone. Apple’s share price has outperformed the S&P 500 index by nearly tenfold. The company started off as “Apple Computer,” best known for its Macintosh personal computers (PCs) in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Despite a strong brand, rapid growth, and high profits in the late 1980s, Apple almost went bankrupt in 1996. Then Jobs went to work, transforming “Apple Computer” into “Apple Inc.” with innovative non-PC products starting in the early 2000’s. In fact, by 2010, the company viewed itself as a “mobile device company.” In the 2009 fiscal year, sales related to the iPhone and the iPod represented nearly 60% of Apple’s total sales of $43 billion. Even in the midst of a severe economic recession, revenues and net income both soared (Yoffie D.B. , Kim R. 2011). Apple has faced challenges competing in an extremely competitive market. However the company has overcome the majority of these challenges by changing strategic focus and entering the high end consumer market. Overall, Apple has pulled itself out of maturity/decline back into the growth stage. An important element of Apple is its ability to differentiate itself from its competitors with the combination of introducing new innovative products and implementing aggressive marketing tactics. Apple pursues a differentiation strategy since it started in 1976. Only one time they offered a computer aiming for the
References: Apple Inc. in 2010 DAVID B . YOF F I E . RENE E KIM 2011 Amanda Cantrell, “Apple’s remarkable comeback Story,” CNNMoney, March 29, 2011, Htpps // uoinvestmentgroup.org, technology,apple inc