Apple to open 40 to 50 locations in 2010

Cupertino, Calif. Apple at a media preview of its fourth Manhattan store, this one on the Upper West Side, announced more flagships to come next year.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the company, which calls flagship locations “significant stores,” said it plans to open more such stores in London, Paris and Shanghai in the spring or early summer of 2010, putting a premium on high-traffic locations and eye-catching architecture.

The newest Manhattan store, which opens Saturday, will be staffed by about 220 employees.

More than half of Apple’s 40 to 50 new retail locations in 2010 will be outside the United States, including the United Kingdom; Canada; Australia; Italy; Switzerland; Germany; France and China, according to the report.