From the technicians formerly known as AppleShark, iTechshark is a stylish Apple boutique retail store. We're not a franchise - this means you won't be buried underneath mountains of red tape when you want to do something a little differently. We believe in a common sense approach to helping our customers.A Brief HistoryAppleShark's buyback service became a big hit, and for our founders, it became clear that the company needed to move into the retail sector. Thus, iTechshark was born, offering a variety of services and products at each location.Immediately, it became clear that there were flaws in the current repair business model. If you wanted to safely purchase a pre-owned Apple product from a local store in St. Louis, you couldn't do it. The customers had a need, and we wanted to be the first to fill it, so in 2012, we acquired a local repair service company.Combining our world-wide infrastructure and product inventory power with the repair company's service knowledge and prestige, we created a completely unique store that offered the best of both repair and retail outlets.We set up shop in Ballwin and while it was a learning experience, our test store ended up being a huge success. As a result, we're preparing to grow our fleet of retail stores throughout the midwest region as early as next year.Declining the Franchise TagWhen a retail store shows signs of success, it's natural to receive franchise requests. However, we've declined franchise requests, and we're not planning to become a franchise, either. Basically, when you are a franchise, it dulls your brand and restricts certain aspects of the things you can do.Instead, we want to invest in better wages and training for our employees. We believe that by keeping iTechshark small and sleek, we'll be able to match the pace of change much better than an unweildly franchise company. We want to continue to deliver a one of a kind experience for both our employees, and our customers.