BestBuy: Death by Apples, Amazons, and Customers?

Category: Techtoday

 

When a customer needed a particular piece of hardware, cable, or component that didn't come with a product, technical support guys (which I was for a number for years) would recommend purchasing the needed item from either CompUsa, Good Guys, Circuit City, or Best Buy.  Among the four retailers, only Best Buy has survived. 

 

I've only purchased a handful of items from Best Buy over the years.  I can only recall buying an excellent wireless Microsoft Mouse in Best Buy Buffalo, New York.  And I also remember picking up an overpriced Sony Reader PRS-600 bundle that included the leather cover in Best Buy, Manhattan.  Although my purchasing power doesn't allow me to buy electronics regularly, I still like walking around Best Buy anyway, despite the somewhat passive-aggressive young salespeople at their stores.  The variety of products in Best Buy make it more fun than the much-revered Apple Store, with its repetitive black-and-white offerings.

 

 

I wasn't really surprised at the closing of Best Buy stores in China, particularly in Xijahui, a shopping district in Shanghai.  They really couldn't compete with the independent resellers found all over the Metro City and Pacific Digital stores (For all their faults, I actually prefer the salespeople in Best Buy - the Chinese shop owners are deadly scary at selling their wares).  However, it is not without sadness that I read about the numerous death-knells for Best Buy, a store parodied in the geek show "Chuck."

 

The forums are rife with complaints about Best Buy's high-prices, inept techs, unfair warranties, and overly incompetent (and young) salespeople.  I don't disagree with their opinions, but neither do I support these comments.  As a seasonal shopper, I don't really get to experience horror stories about broken products and poor customer service.  Moreover, I prefer buying my hardware piecemeal rather than as a complete product or purchasing from smaller stores.  I do agree with other commentators that it's great to touch, feel, and see products.  I freely admit to scoping out newly released items in stores like Best Buy with no intention of buying them.  As much as I like flea market-style shopping areas where there are 50 or more stores clumped in a single floor or building (think Singapore's Sim Lim Square or Philippines' Greenhills), mega stores like Best Buy and Canada's Future Shop have their attraction, too.  They're generally less crowded and although the prices are higher, there are scheduled sales like Black Friday.

 

 

 

The trend of brand retail stores (Microsoft, Sony, HP, Lenovo, Canon, etc.) is a good idea for people like me who still like the traditional approach to shopping.  Although Best Buy has a long way to go if it wants to become as popular as Amazon.com or Apple Store locations (or even survive this economy), I feel that megastores can co-exist with online stores.  However, in order to succeed, Best Buy obviously have to offer a different shopping experience or follow CompUsa, Good Guys, and Circuit City to obscurity.