Apple Closes 3 Stores, Escondido's Hit

0:00It's April 16, California news today starts now, AI powered and ready. Apple shutting down three stores across the U.S., including the one at North County Mall in Escondito, set to close this June. The other spots hitting the exit are in Trumbull, Connecticut, and Towson, Maryland. Meanwhile, San Diego County still has four Apple stores open, Carlsbad, Fashion Valley, Ote Ranch, and Westfield, UTC, with Carlsbad, just a 17 mile drive from Escondito. Local leaders aren't happy about it. A Trumbull official called out the closure for leaving folks without easy tech fixes and jobs, urging Apple to rethink it. Over in Towson, the Union repping workers, marking Apple's first unionized retail spot, blasted the move for ditching employees in community access, near public transit. Escondito staff get relocated nearby, and these malls have been hurting with anchor tenants bailing, like the recent $57 million sale of North County.

1:01Shoppers got options close by, so the shift might not sting as bad as it seems.