Microsoft Mini Stores Are Coming To Best Buy, Sound Familiar?
June 13, 2013
First there was Samsung, and now Microsoft is following Apple’s lead and opening mini-shops at Best Buy. The collaboration will mean Windows-focused stores popping up in 500 Best Buy locations in the U.S., and 100 Best Buy and Future Shop locations in Canada, according to AppleInsider.
According to the report, the mini-stores will be between 1,500 and 2,200 square feet in size, and showcase products running Windows 8, and Windows 8 Phone. The locations will also feature Xbox products, Windows software, and hardware peripherals.
Earlier this year, Samsung began opening Samsung Experience stores at Best Buy locations. These mini-stores, however, are much smaller than what Microsoft hopes to design, with each averaging 460 square feet.
These moves are part of Best Buy’s push to “transform” itself, and eliminate “showrooming.” This is when a customer looks at devices in a Best Buy store, but makes the actual purchase elsewhere online.
There has been no word on when the first Microsoft mini-stores will open at Best Buy locations.
See also: Samsung Will Open More Than 1,400 Mini Stores Inside Best Buy Locations, and Microsoft Launches Siri-Bashing TV Ad For Windows 8-Powered Tablets.
