It didn’t take too long for folks who came to Apple’s opening of its first retail store in San Francisco to try to profit from their $249 investment in a “Lucky Bag.” They’re already showing up on eBay.
Apple’s San Francisco store opened on Saturday morning with Apple CEO Steve Jobs, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, and Newsom’s predecessor, Willie Brown, all in attendance for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to commemorate the event. Mac enthusiasts had camped out from Thursday onward in preparation for the opening of the store, located only a couple of blocks from Union Square at the corner of Stockton and Ellis Streets, a stone’s throw from Market Street.
Apple offered 200 “Lucky Bags” to the first customers in the door willing to pony up $249 for the privilege — and some customers, according to Macworld’s Dan Frakes — were buying more than one. The contents of the bags included an AirPort Extreme Wireless Base Station, Bluetooth-equipped Apple wireless keyboards and mice, D-Link USB Bluetooth adapter, .Mac membership, iLife, Keynote and 10 percent discount Apple Gift Card. Some also included an iPod or iPod mini. Apple said the retail value of the contents in the Lucky Bags varied from $600 to $1,000.
With a few hours of the store’s opening the Lucky Bags had found their way onto the pages of auction site eBay. As MacCentral posted this story, prices for the bags were running between $300 – $400. Some auctioneers are even selling the empty bag alone, in hope of attracting collectors or those interested in making a fashion statement with the large black cloth zipper-clad bag.