The tough economic times are felt everywhere and Apple Inc makes no exception, despite the fact that it recorded a better-than-expected financial quarter. The Cupertino-based company is scaling back a bit in an attempt to cut costs. 

 

Apple just had its best non-holiday quarter ever, but it is still with not one, but both eyes on the economic recession. In the 10-Q form filed with the SEC, the company notes that it has 14,000 full-time retail employees as of the end of the quarter that just passed. The number of retail employees is 1,600 employees lower that the last time Apple filed the form in December 2008. 

 

It seems that Apple laid off those workers, but it also could have had shifted them to part-time status or the number was higher because Apple employed more personnel during the holiday season. However, considering the fact that the number amounts to about 10% of Apple's retail workforce, chances are that Apple actually laid them off. 

 

Apple seems to slow down a bit in the expensive retail segment. The company opened just one new store in the second quarter compared to four stores opened in the same quarter of last year. The plans are to open 25 stores In 2009. in 2008, Apple opened twice as many. The trend is the same when it comes to retail revenue. The average of revenue per retail store was of $8.5 million in the second quarter of 2008. The average in the second quarter of 2009 was of $7 million.