Best Buy, one of the world’s largest consumer electrical and electronics retailers, is heading for the UK next year.It’s just announced plans to buy a £1.1bn 50% stake in British-based retailer The Carphone Warehouse, and roll out Best Buy stores to Europe starting in 2009.
The US retailer, which is also one of four bidders chasing a 49% stake in Marantz/Denon parent company D&M Holdings, already has over 1300 stores in the USA, Canada and China, with a total of 150,000 employees and some 4.32m square metres of selling space.
The new company will expand The Carphone Warehouse’s business in Europe, and also aims to “build a significant market share in consumer electronics retailing in Europe, through the roll-out of Best Buy stores, services and websites in selected markets, beginning in calendar [year] 2009.”
The two companies “expect wireless information provision, mobility and broadband to create significant new consumer and business opportunities.”, adding that they “believe that no other European retailer offers the type of shopping experience the new venture intends to provide for consumers”.
For an idea of what might be on the way, take a look at the Best Buy USA website here.
