Best Buy Unveils New "Mobile Life" Store

Best Buy Unveils New "Mobile Life" Store
October 16, 2008

Minneapolis-based Best Buy Co. Inc. officially announced that it is launching standalone stores in malls designed "to help customers get more from their mobile lives." At 3,000 sq. ft., the new Best Buy Mobile stores are double the size of the original standalone Best Buy Mobile stores, yet not as large as traditional Best Buy stores, which average about 40,000 sq. ft. Stores will launch in three mall locations this month in The Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn.; Fair Oaks Mall in Fairfax, Va.; and Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Ill. The new Best Buy Mobile stores will help customers navigate the wireless landscape by offering a full range of mobile devices, including phones, laptops and other handhelds, as well as teaching customers how the devices work together. The stores target mall shoppers that don’t traditionally shop at Best Buy's big-box stores: women and younger shoppers. According to Best Buy, this audience currently shops multiple retailers for many of their products. Through the new store format, Best Buy Mobile hopes to simplify their shopping experience, bringing all of the products as well as the service plans and accessories needed for their mobile lifestyle under one roof. "The new Best Buy Mobile stores are based on one simple idea: technology is better when it works together," said Shawn Score, president of Best Buy Mobile. The new Best Buy Mobile store incorporates a specialized assortment of mobile products featuring mobile phones, ultra-portable notebook computers, mobile media devices and accessories; knowledgeable, non-commissioned associates, including Geek Squad agents; Best Buy Mobile's Walk-Out-Working program, which provides multimedia and smart-phone set up; straight-forward pricing, including no rebates; product repairs, loaner phones and additional services that keep the technologies up and running.