The spread of the Apple cult
Yesterday, in a room full of Realtors, someone said that they felt slighted because they moved to Apple products to be in a bug-free environment yet software products required to run a real estate business aren’t compliant, nor are they bug free. There was a great ruckus at the assertion that Apple is superior, but for the people who agreed, there was a solidarity that those on the outside simply couldn’t understand.
The joke was made about the cult of Apple and that the cult “works,” and the room moved on, but it is perhaps this cult joke isn’t really a joke. There is no joke in owning reliable products that people are willing to pay more for, and the cult mentality has gone mainstream (thus making it no longer a cult, rather a corporate culture). Because Apple has gone mainstream, their profits are soaring.
Apple rising in Fortune 500 rankings
Fortune has just released their annual “Fortune 500” rankings of America’s largest companies according to revenue with Apple quickly rising in the ranks and is now in the top 50.
Details of Apple’s standings:
- Apple jumped up 21 spots this year to #35.
- Revenue for 2010 exceeded $65 billion.
- Apple’s profits were $14 billion in 2010.
- Apple rose 18 stops to be the 8th most profitable company in 2010.
- Apple is still second place for revenue but has surpassed Dell.
- With 12,600 employees added to the company in 2010, it is the seventh largest hirer.
We may make jokes of the Mac vs. Android debate, but Apple is experiencing a meteoric rise that has surpassed the buzz and the cult of users that camp out weeks before a product release. They’re mainstream, profits and revenue are rocking and Apple is here for a fight for their marketshare.
