Top 20 Rank: 7
Rank among: Computers: 2
You could say that Apple has landed - not only on our street corners and in our malls but also, for the first time, on the top ten of our Most Admired Companies list. Apple's peers have watched it upend industries from computers to music. And now it's become the best retailer in America. In 2004, Apple reached $1 billion in annual sales faster than any retailer in history; last year, sales reached $1 billion a quarter. And now comes the next, if not must-have, then must-see, product.
"Our stores were conceived and built for this moment in time - to roll out iPhone," CEO Steve Jobs told Fortune. If sales are anywhere near expectations - Apple hopes to move ten million iPhones in 2008 - the typical Apple Store could be selling, in absolute terms, as much as a Best Buy, and with just a fraction of the selling space.
More: See how Apple rates in 8 key areas.
