A POPULAR Best Buy location will shutter it’s doors at the end of the month after 30 years in the same location.
It’s the latest store to face the chopping block after the consumer electronics company confirmed that more stores would get axed.
Best Buy in Gaithersburg, Maryland will close on October 26, 2024 after 30 years[/caption]
The Gaithersburg 270 Center will close it’s doors one last time on October 26 after initially opening them in the 90s.
The closure is somewhat unsurprising for the shoppers who once frequented the location.
First reported by The MocoShow, shoppers took to the comment section to voice their opinion.
One person said: “When they stopped selling movies, that’s when I stopped shopping there.”
Another added: “This is how they killed their business model.
“Take everything out that drew in the foot traffic like movies and music.
“Now I only have to go there every ten to fifteen years to pick out a new washer, dryer, refrigerater, computer or something else along those lines.”
A third commented: “No loss, Best Buys hasn’t been best for a long time now.”
In an earnings call, CEO Corie Barry said shoppers could expect 10 to 15 shuttered locations in 2024 and a similar amount in the following year.
That means a potential 25 stores or more could close by the end of 2025.
Barry added that the retailer was trying to “strike a balance between its workforce and consumer interest.”
CFO Matthew Bilunas added on the call that Best Buy would “continue to close existing traditional stores during our rigorous review of stores as their leases come up for renewal.”
Several contributing factors to the closures — including changes in consumer spending habits, inflation rates, and supply chain issues from the height of the coronavirus pandemic — were cited by Barry as well.
Locations in California, Colorado, Ohio, Minnesota, Missouri, and Virginia have already closed, per Fox affiliate WFXT.
Local shoppers can still head to the nearest Best Buy stores in Germantown and Rockville.
Other locations closing nationwide have yet to be identified.
The tech retailer currently has 1,053 remaining locations, per its website.
Sales for Best Buy have also been an issue over the past few fiscal quarters.
SALES STRUGGLES
At the end of the second quarter of this year, the brand’s revenue dropped about three percent from $9.6 billion to $9.3 billion from the same time in 2023.
Last year, it also saw an overall revenue decline of six percent, according to Retail Dive.
Barry said Best Buy is adjusting to different consumer habits, which include those “seeking value in sales events and one who is also willing to spend on high price-point products when they need to or when there is new, compelling technology,” per a recent earnings call.
She also expressed confidence about Best Buy’s position moving forward.
“We don’t believe anything in our data signals that customer behavior has changed in a way that would make us increasingly cautious,” Barry added.
EXPRESS EXCITEMENT
Best Buy also made a significant move to open hundreds of additional stores in Canada earlier this year under a different business format.
The company partnered with Bell Canada, which proclaims itself as the largest telecommunications company in the country, to open 167 Express stores by the end of the year.
Each Express location comes with a “curated assortment of tech” and offers in-store pickup through online orders.
Specialists from the Geek Squad are also stationed in the smaller stores for service and plan protections on phones and gadgets.
Reasons Behind Best Buy Closures
In a recent earnings call, Best Buy CEO & Director Corie Sue Barry noted various factors that contributed to the decision to close store doors:
- Change in consumer spending habits
- Lowering of product innovation during pandemic
- Inflation
- Supply chain-challenged years
- Stagnant housing market
- Macro pressures impacting overall retail
- Low level of product innovation
