It's interesting to see the new direction they seem to be taking.
All of those fullscreen pictures of people don't feel very "Apple-y", they look more like Tommy Hilfiger ads to me. And the contrast is especially noticeable when you scroll down to the all white, all products sections right beneath them.
This is apparently what the UX profession as a whole has decided is the best, most pretty-looking thing. Interestingly I've not seen studies that show people like it when they go to a web site with intent to find things, but that's secondary to looking pretty.
The pictures don't have to be meaningful or relevant - they just have to be big, and avoid distracting you with silly text that might convey relevant information. To get to anything like that, it's 'good design' to force the user to scroll first. hadn't you heard?
</rant> Sorry. This large picture + no meaningful up-front content + much scrolling trend is so irritating.
I'm guessing this is Angela Ahrendts' influence from the luxury goods world. Their ads have led with narrative (vs. cold tech specs) for a while now. I think it's just made it's way into their store design. High-end fashion knows a thing or two about making you feel good about an expensive purchase.
All of those fullscreen pictures of people don't feel very "Apple-y", they look more like Tommy Hilfiger ads to me. And the contrast is especially noticeable when you scroll down to the all white, all products sections right beneath them.