Apple Watch will Reportedly Be Available in Apple Retail Stores by June

During Tim Cook's recent visit to China, the CEO of Apple met with employees at Apple's China headquarters to discuss China-focused announcements, as well as other tidbits regarding the Apple Watch and Apple Pay.

As shared by 9to5mac, Tim Cook began by telling the employees that "the Watch could not be going better, we’re working really hard on making more.” Cook promised that Apple Store will begin carrying the Apple Watch "by June" -- corroborating the leaked message from Angela Ahrendts in April.

The Apple Watch was one of the first Apple product launches that consisted of an online-only launch; however, Ahrendts assured employees that this was a unique situation (most likely to due supply constraints) that prevented an in-store product launch.


Multiple employees in attendance also asked Cook about Apple Pay's rollout in China. “I think we’ve made progress [on Apple Pay for China]”, Cook said. “There’s different people and different banks involved." Cook hopes that the launch will occur "soon."

Apple's aggressive expansion into China has contributed significantly to the country's growth. Cook responded to an employee who asked if China would surpass the U.S. as a region that brings in the most revenue for Apple. “I do think that China will surpass the U.S., it’s just a matter of time,” Cook noted. Apple shows no sign of slowing down its expansion in China, with plans to bring the total number of Apple Stores to 40 by 2016.