Best Buy CEO-For-Now Promises Change, End To Showrooming

Best Buy has been shaken up by the recent, unexpected departures of both CEO Brian “My Work Here Is” Dunn and company founder Richard “I Need a Better Nickname” Schulze. And interim CEO Mike Mikan says more changes are coming to the electronics retailer.

Speaking at the annual meeting this morning in Richfield, Minn., Mikan told shareholders that the first thing Best Buy needs to do is figure out how to curb showrooming, the growing practice of using bricks-and-mortar retailers as a place to check out items that will eventually be purchased online.

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the company will be providing “new intensive induction” to 50,000 Best Buy employees at a training center in Minnesota starting in August.

“We have to invest in employees by giving them more training and better tools to maximize what they can offer for our customers,” explained Mikan.

Best Buy will continue to try to pare back the mammoth retail footprint that it spent the better part of the last decade expanding.

While Mikan says Best Buy is a “personalized technology solutions” company, it is also looking to make more business-to-business arrangements — like tech support contract between Geek Squad and the AARP — to bolster revenue.

And yet, while Mikan and others are praising change, Best Buy employees are still busy making the same head-scratchingly bad upsells.

Anxiety and questions at Best Buy annual meeting [Minneapolis Star-Tribune]

Best Buy Committed to Change, CEO Says [NY Times]

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