Apple forced to close store in Bergamo, Italy temporarily

Oriocenter
Oriocenter (Image credit: Apple)

What you need to know

  • Apple's Oriocenter store in Bergamo, Italy, is set to close this weekend.
  • A government decree has forced much of Northern Italy into a shutdown.
  • Apple has also restricted employee travel to the region.

Apple's Oriocenter store in Bergamo, Italy is set to close this weekend following a government decree regarding the coronavirus outbreak.

As reported by Apple Insider:

Apple is set to shutter a single mall location, Apple Oriocenter, on March 7 and 8 on orders from the Italian government.As demanded by a decree of the President of the Council of Ministers issued last week, all medium and large retail stores, as well as commercial establishments within shopping centers, in the provinces of Bergamo, Lodi, Piacenza, and Cremona are to close on Saturday and Sunday to prevent spread of the new coronavirus. Similar measures were established for other provinces and territories.

As the report notes, several stores were closed last weekend in a similar move. The tweet at the heart of the story postulates that four Apple stores will have to close as a result of the move, however, no other closures are reflected on Apple's Italian retail store websites, only Bergamo.

The Oriocenter store will close at 22:00 on Friday, March 6, reopening at 09:00 on Monday, March 9.

Apple recently issued a memo to employees restricting travel to Italy, as well as South Korea. From that report:

The company explained in the memo that it will now be restricting travel to China, South Korea, and Italy. Only "business-critical" travel will be permitted, and those wanting to go will have to get approval from a Vice President of the company.

Stephen Warwick
News Editor

Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design. Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwarwick9