Apple Store 2.0 experience designed by Steve Jobs and Jony Ive?

In what is almost surely the beginning of a lot more details leaking out about changes to the Apple Retail Store, 9to5Mac has received a bevy of information from anonymous sources. Those sources claim that many changes are about to be made to the Apple Retail Store experience in an initiative dubbed “Apple Store 2.0”.

The sources claim that the design of the new retail experience involved Apple’s SVP of Retail Ron Johnson and was led by Apple CEO Steve Jobs and Apple’s chief designer Jony Ive. This new experience would include “Startup Sessions” which would enable users to have their first Mac or iDevice experience guided by a store representative. In addition the paper signs next to products that currently display prices and features would be replaced by iPads displaying the same information in an interactive manner.

9to5Mac says that their sources say the new Apple Store 2.0 would also feature ‘beefed up’ displays and be accompanied by a new App Store app.

Next, these new Apple Stores – at least in some locations – will feature beefed up displays, which are described as “huge,” in addition to brand-new sound systems. Besides those in-store changes, Apple is set to release a brand-new Apple Store iOS application – possibly on Sunday – that is even more interactive. For example, a user with the app can walk into the store and the app will know which location the user is at. The app can even ask the user if they’d like to speak to a specialist, for example.

These rumors come along with other recent news that the Apple Retail Stores would begin taking returns via iPads running RetailMe software. Apple is also continuing to open new retail stores as evidenced by the rumored opening of a ‘massive’ new store in Madrid. It’s unknown whether the new Madrid store would feature the new ‘2.0’ experience but it seems likely.