Modesto, California – As the driver of the United Land Service and Apple fan, Jeff Maciel is in a state of interesting to see how the Central California in the San Joaquin Valley deal with a deepening economic recession, as Apple is moving into the neighborhood.

Jeff Maciel reduces their holiday spending this year, but are happy to have a nearby retail store Apple.

(Credit: Tom Krazit / News CNET) as he beat path to a crowded parking lot outside the new Apple retail store in Vintage Faire Mall in Modesto, Maciel, reluctantly admitted that he and his family spend less this holiday, as he watches a pile of boxes out his UPS route to decline.

“I do the same number of stops, but the parties down the road,” soft-spoken buyer, as his son and daughter fidgeted, probably more interested in a big bag of candy See they had with them, and not to discuss the economy with a stranger.

To buy a new case for iPhone 3G, Maciel, drove half an hour across the area between the hardest hit by the credit crunch and the resulting home foreclosure, which helped plunge the world into recession. Modesto, where Apple decided to open its 250-retail store in November, was the ninth-largest buyout bid activity in the U.S. in October, according to statistics published in RealtyTrac. That number may have been caused by rising unemployment, which at 11.8 percent is close to the 10-year high.

Just 8 miles from the ancient Faire Mall, one of Modesto in the worst affected areas was very quiet on the sunny but brisk Saturday morning. Rubbish available on the streets near the airport Modesto, dotted with side-up homes have a say “Bank ownership” of real estate signs out front.

But in the second to last trade before the holiday weekend, shoppers were bustling at the Apple Store, which was “dead” on Friday, according to one employee of Apple. The steady stream of people ventured into the store to check the MacBooks and iPod touches evident in the display from Apple usual low wooden table.

250th Apple retail store opened in foreclosure, suffers from Modesto, California.

(Credit: Tom Krazit / News CNET) Amber Mount Modesto came into the store because her two sons, Jacob and Josh, both want a new iPod touches to Christmas. Hill believes, Apple products are “too high” but the guys were clearly excited about the prospects for iPods makes them the way of their wish lists under the tree.

So, what about Apple in the landmark 250th retail store in Modesto wind? Two years ago, when Modesto in agriculture at the heart of the economy is in much better shape, the city wants to find a way to keep its residents in the city, rather than their desire to places like Sacramento or Pleasanton high-end retail stores, said Brent Sinclair , Community and Economic Development Director Modesto.

City and crop Faire Mall Management Company Macerich agreed the response was the so-called “center of life”, trendy outdoor Mall addition to the traditional mall design space with two long stories and food court. Lifestyle centers are designed to lure the lofty goal of retailers such as Coach, Bebe, Coldwater Creek, and all, Apple. Sinclair knew that women’s clothing retailer Coldwater Creek will be a central part of the construction, but received a “pleasant surprise” when – are usually cloaked with secrecy – it became clear that Apple will be occupying a small retail spaces within the facility.

Moreover, Apple Store, parallel to the retail and coach Bebe, drew a lot more buyers, on Saturday afternoon than any of the neighboring stores. It was unclear how many buyers actually left the store with the new iMacs and iPhones, but children gathered to have their pictures taken next to the Elf wearing iPod headphones as they excitedly discussed their own iPods.

Click on the full special reportAs it became clear that the world is entering an economic slowdown as bad as all seen over the past 80 years, many of whether Apple to $ 24 billion in the bank and virtually no debt, a “recession-proof.” NPD numbers released Tuesday indicated that Mac growth may be ebbing recession mentality taking hold among U.S. consumers, Apple support base.

One way to judge the ability to drive Apple out of recession is to track its effectiveness in some areas affected by unemployment and foreclosure, such as Modesto, Las Vegas, and southern Florida. Apple has a reputation as a supplier of fashionable tech digerati or on the coast, but it is expanding its retail empire outside the fortress in San Francisco and New York for many years now, and has been generating results.

Despite the obvious desire to get on their day, Maciel and his children were happy to have the Apple Store in their neighborhood, even if that meant they had to do half-way past dairy farms and nut trees from the tiny town of Hilmar in the mall. Nevertheless, they are not the kind of rabid Apple fanatics who keep the company afloat during the past: Maciels were not in the market for a new iPod this year raised with children “iPods in the past year.

Nonetheless, Maciel seemed confident that even if things get worse next year, and he further slash its costs, Apple will remain on your short list. Judging from the three strangers in shopping malls “Sweet River Bar and Grill, who struck activity talk about their new iPhones, and the steady parade of families going to and from the Apple Store, There are others in the valley of San Joaquin, who feel that way too.