(WKBN) — Best Buy is looking to close some stores this year and work to offer a smaller experience for customers in some markets.
The company is looking to close 10 to 15 stores, following the closing of 24 stores last year, CFO Matthew Bilunas said during a fourth-quarter earnings call with investors last month.
He explained that Best Buy will “close existing traditional stores during our rigorous review of stores as their leases come up for renewal.”
The company cited consumer spending habits, lowering of product innovation during the pandemic, and “supply challenge years,” among other things.
Best Buy has not yet said what stores will be impacted. Nexstar’s WJW reports that a location in Wooster, Ohio, has already shuttered.
While some stores will close, others could get a face-lift. CEO Corie Sue Barry said that not every store will be remodeled, but changes will include bringing “excitement” and “relevancy” to the center of the store area.
“And so the goal here is not that every single store is going to look like an experience store. The goal though is that every single one has a bit of a refreshed look and feel, has more of those vendor partnership opportunities and has a better ability for our associates to merchandise in a way that makes everything feel kind of full and exciting,” she added.
Barry also said Best Buy plans to open a few outlet centers and small-format stores where the company has either never had a presence or closed a large-format store.
This announcement comes as the retailer world faces various other shake-ups.
Target recently rolled out restrictions on its self-checkouts, and some Walmart customers claim their stores have limited access to self-checkouts to Walmart+ members and Spark delivery drivers only. Costco has cracked down on non-members yet again, making their food courts accessible to cardholders only.
Meanwhile, other retailers have also announced plans to close some of their brick-and-mortar locations. Dollar Tree, Inc., which owns Dollar Tree and Family Dollar, said it will close about 1,000 stores nationwide to improve profitability. Macy’s will shutter 150 stores amid losses and declining sales, and The Body Shop is closing down all U.S. operations as it files for bankruptcy.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
