Apple Goes Wal-Mart?

Gary over at infoAppleStore.com has an interesting tidbit today about a recent job posting on Apple's site. It seems the Apple Stores are looking to fill a newly-created position of Concierge, which at first glance looks like a greeter. From the description, however, it appears that this job is designed to go beyond the typical "Welcome to [insert store name here], have fun shopping, and don't forget we're watching you" approach of many big boxes. You can read the description here, but the nutshell version specifies an outgoing people-person to welcome customers, excite them, direct them, and, when the customer leaves, provide them with a "fond farewell". It sounds like Apple is taking a basic but oft-overlooked notion (that customer's first and last impressions of the store will define their experience) and making it the key responsibility of one staff member. Interestingly enough, these positions are currently only available in roughly half of Apple's stores.

Will it work? Will it erode the level of service provided by other store team members? Will Apple take a unique tact to ensure their Concierge doesn't turn into a generic greeter? Will they be able to find enough Apple-centric extroverts to fill the positions? Will it serve to improve customers' experiences in the store? And if it does work, how long until other retailers follow suit? We'll just have to wait and see.