Apple is leasing retail space in downtown Austin for the upcoming South by Southwest conference. The temporary retail store will be located at Sixth and Congress Street and preparations are under way for a Friday opening. This debut coincides with the launch of the iPad 2 and the SXSW conference which begins March 11. The space is quite close to the downtown Austin Convention Center -- handy if you are attending SXSW and want to get an iPad 2 without using a car or taxi.
Rance Wilemon, a partner of Plat.Form Real Estate which is leasing the space to Apple, suggests this opening is not meant to test the market in downtown Austin, but is a way for Apple to participate in the popular SXSW conference. Apple already owns and operates
