Apple’s App Store-Related Jobs Rise By Nearly 300K

The iOS app economy has created nearly 300,000 new jobs since April 2019, “helping to provide opportunities” for business and employment growth even during the COVID-19 crisis, Apple said in a press release.

“The App Store ecosystem now supports more than 2.1 million U.S. jobs across all 50 states — an increase of 15 percent since last year — as part of the 2.7 million jobs Apple supports across the country,” Apple said. “Since the App Store launched in 2008, the iOS app economy has become one of the fastest-growing sectors of the economy.”

Apple points to companies such as Caribu and H‑E‑B as having “adapted their businesses to make sure they can keep supporting their customers during a challenging time.”

“We’ve had incredible growth in the last year, and we’ve massively expanded our team to meet demand,” said Maxeme Tuchman, co-founder of Caribu in Miami. The Florida company’s app sets up video calls in which participants can do such things as draw together, read bedtime stories, solve puzzles and even visit museums.

She credits the App Store with providing a platform for her Florida company to help connect families and friends during the pandemic, while providing “stable, well-paying jobs to our growing number of employees as well.” During the pandemic, the company has grown from four employees to 12.

Texas-based retailer H‑E‑B, founded in 1905, now operates 350 stores throughout the state. In a fortunate move, the retailer launched the My H‑E‑B mobile app in the months before the pandemic hit. The app makes “curbside pickup and home delivery of groceries and other essential items easy and streamlined.”

“Our focus on ease of use turned out to be even more important than we’d imagined, and we’re proud that our app is making it possible for more Texans to take care of their families during the pandemic,” Mike Georgoff, chief product officer for H‑E‑B Digital, said in the release. Because of the high rate of growth that followed the pandemic, H‑E‑B expanded its digital team by more than 150 people.

Apple’s App Store had total sales of an estimated $50 billion in 2019. The App Store has been a bright part of the economy, which has sunk under the weight of the COVID-19 economy.