iStore: Are They Ripping Us Off??

For nearly 10 years, I have been the proud owner of various Apple products. Today is the first day where I have been truly disappointed by them.

I am looking to upgrade my current MacBook Air to the latest available version, the MacBook Air 13-inch | Apple M1. Just yesterday I visited the iStore at Queens Hotel in Cape Town, where I was informed that the selling price was R16 999. This was not indicated nor expressed to be a sale price - this was the selling price. I told the salesperson that I would go home and give it more thought before purchasing, as it is a large sum to pay once-off.

At home, I did some research into potentially buying the same laptop second-hand from the pre-owned store, but after seeing a price difference of only R2000 saving, I decided to rather buy a brand new one. Today I visited the iStore in Cavendish Square, and to my utter and complete disappointment, the price had been increased to R17 999. To make matters worse, they have the audacity to say online that it had previously been on sale for R17 499. A blatant lie if you ask me.

I don't understand, how a product that has not miraculously gotten better overnight, can increase in price. I furthermore do not understand how I was not informed when speaking to the salesperson only yesterday, that it would be going up in price the following day. If the product had been on sale, which it was not (nor was it expressed to me that it was on sale), then I could understand the increase. But, for them to just increase the price and claim that it was on sale the day before for R17 459, is outrageous business practice.

And regardless of why the price was increased so drastically overnight, there was no notification to customers of this impending increase. We are all in difficult financial times right now, and for iStore to do this without warning is a betrayal of the trust of consumers, thinking that everyone can just fork out an extra R1000 overnight.

Won't be recommending iStore to anyone anytime soon.

A sincerely disappointed, and long-time Apple customer.