Verizon, AT&T Make a Home at Best Buy

Best Buy is expanding its roster of the branded in-store shops that have helped it remain relevant by recently adding new partnerships with two phone carriers.Already boasting boutiques for Apple, Microsoft, Samsung and Sony, the consumer electronics retailer now has inked deals with AT&T and Verizon to roll out similar stores-within-a-store.Verizon “Experience Stores” have already debuted at some 100 locations and will roll out to 250 total stores by the end of 2015. They showcase the latest smartphones, tablets, computers, wearables, accessories and data plans.“The Verizon Experience in Best Buy is geared to showcase connected lifestyles — such as wearable tech, computing on the go and connected home — and the devices and plans that make these lifestyles a reality,” said John Colaiuti, the carrier’s national distribution vice president, in a media release.AT&T shops have begun rolling out and will also reach some 250 locations by the end of the year. They will showcase mobile products, wearables, connected-car plug-ins, the carrier’s “Digital Life” home automation and security platform and, eventually, DirecTV services from its newly acquired satellite provider.Both the Verizon and AT&T shops will range from 90 to 180 square feet and will be staffed by specially trained Best Buy employees. In many cases, boutiques from both carriers will be located in the same Best Buy location.“The shops allow us to offer even better service to our [shoppers], whether they need help with their data plan or understanding how their phone or tablet can better control their increasingly connected life,” said Best Buy senior category officer of mobile and connected home Josh Will in the release. “The mobile device is becoming the remote control to everything else in our lives, but it can be confusing. We can help shoppers make sense of it all.”The branded boutiques are a key initiative of Best Buy chief executive officer Hubert Joly — under whose leadership the chain has seen eight solid quarters in a row — and are credited with helping improve the chain’s traffic and sales as part of a turnaround strategy intended to leverage core competencies like in-store technical counseling and core assets such as physical stores. (See "Market Position and Strategy Overview" in the retailer's profile.)In an interesting twist on the concept, Best Buy is also installing its own boutiques inside 10 Macy’s stores this fall as part of a broader strategy to leverage key gifting occasions. The licensed shops will span some 300 square feet, carry products such as smartphones, tablets, smart watches, headphones, speakers, cases and chargers, and will be staffed by Best Buy employees.“Our customers have expressed interest in electronics for self-purchase and gift-giving, and this collaboration with Best Buy reinforces Macy’s as a shopping destination throughout the year for products that are most in demand,” said Macy’s president Jeff Gennette in a media release. Gennette indicated the new partners will “test and learn” through the holidays and into 2016.

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