Move over Apple, there’s a fresh computer brand adding a fruity flavour to walk-in stores.
The first physical Raspberry Pi shop has opened in the historic university city of Cambridge, which is also home to Raspberry Pi Foundation, the organisation behind the family of best-selling credit card-sized boards.
The store will do more than sell Raspberry Pi boards, and will also be a meeting place for Pi owners to share their tips and tricks for programming the $35 computer and its siblings.
The opening bucks a recent trend in UK shopping centres, which have seen a rash of big brand names shut their doors amid falling sales.
Click through this gallery to see inside the new Pi store, which opened its doors to the public today.
SEE: Raspberry Pi: More must-read coverage (TechRepublic on Flipboard)
The store is designed to make it easy as possible to get started with the Pi, with staff on hand in-store to give advice, alongside how-to guides and new starter kits, which bundle together the accessories needed to get started alongside the latest Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+.
“Opening Raspberry Pi’s first shop, and introducing the new kit, are important steps on our way to achieving broader adoption of our products,” said Eben Upton, CEO of Raspberry Pi Trading.
“Our vision has always been to make low-cost PCs accessible to everyone: the shop provides potential customers with a chance to learn about Raspberry Pi, while at the same time giving us a chance to learn more about their needs,” he said adding that the shop will be “a great destination for existing Raspberry Pi fans”.
SEE: Raspberry Pi: More must-read coverage (TechRepublic on Flipboard)
The new shop is located in Cambridge’s Grand Arcade shopping centre, home to over 60 high street and luxury retailers.
SEE: Raspberry Pi: More must-read coverage (TechRepublic on Flipboard)
As well as hardware, the store sells a range of Raspberry Pi-branded clothing.
SEE: Raspberry Pi: More must-read coverage (TechRepublic on Flipboard)
A shop assistant tallies up orders on a touchscreen tablet in store.
SEE: Raspberry Pi: More must-read coverage (TechRepublic on Flipboard)
Alongside the base Raspberry Pi computers, shoppers can buy accessories to use with the Pi, ranging from portable SSDs to remote controls.
SEE: Raspberry Pi: More must-read coverage (TechRepublic on Flipboard)
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Nick Heath is a computer science student and was formerly a journalist at TechRepublic and ZDNet.
