Best Buy To Close 50 U.S. Stores, Stock Drops

Post by **WLJ** » Thu Mar 29, 2012 9:07 pm

Best Buy To Close 50 U.S. Stores, Stock Drops
Aaron Smith

POSTED: 10:52 am EDT March 29, 2012
UPDATED: 12:54 pm EDT March 29, 2012

Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Best Buy's stock took a dive on Thursday after the retailer reported quarterly results that included plans to close 50 big- box stores in the U.S. by 2013.

The company said it plans to open the same number of stores in China during the same time period.

Best Buy's stock price dropped 8% as the company's better-than-expected earnings report failed to trump the news about shuttering brick-and-mortar locations.

The retailer reported an adjusted quarterly profit of $2.47 a share. That was significantly higher than the projected $2.16 a share, from a survey of analysts by Thomson Reuters.

Best Buy currently has 1,105 big-box stores in the U.S., not counting the pending closures, according to company spokeswoman Kelly Groehler. In China, there are 185 stores under the company's Five Star brand, she said.

The company plans to open 100 "mobile small format stand-alone stores" in the U.S. in fiscal year 2013. It also said 14 of the new stores in China will be "mobile store-within-a-store concepts."

Groehler described the "stand-alone" stores as small stores located in strip malls and similar retail locations. She described the "store-within-a-store" as a small Best Buy store located within a larger Best Buy store.

The company would not identify the stores slated for closure.

Best Buy has struggled to compete in a market that has become increasingly dominated by online retailers like Amazon.

Best Buy said it was closing the stores to lower costs. The company projects $250 million in savings in fiscal year 2013. The company plans to save $800 million in costs by fiscal year 2015.

Read more: http://www.wlky.com/money/30793055/deta ... z1qYeLjKvd

http://www.youtube.com/user/ssracer02 · Post by **ssracer** » Thu Mar 29, 2012 9:19 pm

my bad...been spending too much on gun stuff, haven't been shopping there as much

Post by **Mike** » Thu Mar 29, 2012 10:18 pm

I know someone on this board that has an evil grin when he reads this!

Post by **Next** » Fri Mar 30, 2012 7:05 am

I hate BB. Service sucks

Post by **etownguy** » Fri Mar 30, 2012 9:43 am

I work for BB well Geek Squad, and I will be the first to tell you that their number one problem is who they hire. Store managers always hire the "attractive" younger applicants not the people who need a job to live. this in turn makes a workforce who does not care about their job and does not know what it is to HAVE to have a job. As soon as I got a opportunity I got out of the store level. I now work at the national repair facility in brooks, the pay is substantially higher AND most of the people there like their jobs and put forth effort.

While it surprises me that they would close 50 stores I would be willing to bet every one of them is either close to a much larger store or has really low sales volume. Either way I am not concerned about my job staying around long term and if they do go tits up I will get a very nice severance package!

Post by **jackalo626** » Fri Mar 30, 2012 6:34 pm

Sucks to hear but somebody has to sell the electronics so it opens up room for another competitor.

Post by **etownguy** » Sat Mar 31, 2012 12:24 am

I got the full run down on this tonight.. them closing these stores has nothing to do with going under, in there place 150 more stores will be opened just smaller more profitable locations. in the retail world you look at a store as a profit per square foot type scenario. BBY is trending more towards the profit end.

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