Best Buy UK
The Eleven-Store British Big-Box Experiment
Forgotten Shops · 2010–2012
Archived on
Region
United Kingdom
Associated With
Best Buy Europe - 50/50 venture between Best Buy and Carphone Warehouse
Defining Feature
An eleven-store attempt to adapt Best Buy’s American big-box electronics format for Britain
Status
Closed - last British store closed on 14 January 2012
Overview
Best Buy UK brought the American chain’s large-format electronics store model to British shoppers.
Its first store opened at West Thurrock in April 2010. Shoppers could try electronics and appliances at hands-on displays, then use a central service hub for trade-ins, setup help, tutorials and Geek Squad support.
The operation grew to eleven stores and added online shopping, but closure consultation began in November 2011. The last British store closed on 14 January 2012; Best Buy’s US chain and the wider European venture continued.
Why It Mattered
Hands-on demonstrations and technical help were central to Best Buy’s attempt to bring American big-box electronics retailing to Britain. Best Buy Europe later reported positive customer-satisfaction scores, yet concluded that its eleven stores lacked the reach, scale and returns needed. The experiment illustrates the gap between pleasing the people who visited and attracting enough business to sustain the operation.
Venture Formation and Rollout
- Best Buy and Carphone Warehouse agreed their equally owned European retail venture on 7 May 2008; the transaction completed after shareholder approval on 30 June.
- The first big-box openings were deferred from late 2009 to spring 2010 while the venture sought stronger sites and lease terms.
- The Register reported that BestBuy.co.uk began transactional trading on 4 November 2010, when six physical stores were operating.
Closure and Accounting Record
- The announcement of 7 November 2011 began employee consultation; its proposed year-end completion was an intention, not the final closure date.
- A 24 January 2012 company update said all eleven stores and the online operation had closed. Later accounts date the last store closure to 14 January.
- New BBED’s discontinued-operation note records £90 million revenue, a £73 million loss before exceptional closure items and £147 million of closure costs, producing a £220 million pre-tax loss for its stated 2012 accounting scope.
- The British withdrawal did not end Best Buy Europe immediately; Best Buy agreed to sell its interest back to Carphone Warehouse in 2013.
Customers and Employees During Closure
- Best Buy Europe said warranties, service plans, financial contracts, deliveries and other services would continue after the closure announcement.
- Carphone Warehouse reported in January 2012 that alternative roles had been offered to almost everyone who wished to remain with the business; this does not establish every individual outcome.
Sources & Records
Best Buy and The Carphone Warehouse to Create a New Company
Records the May 2008 agreement for a 50/50 European retail venture and the proposed introduction of Best Buy stores, distinct from Carphone Warehouse's fixed-line business.
Transaction with Best Buy Completed
Confirms completion on 30 June 2008 after shareholder approval and Best Buy's approximately £1.1 billion payment for its 50 per cent interest.
Best Buy Europe to Focus Its Connectivity Strategy and Begin Closure Consultation
Lists all eleven stores, begins closure consultation and records company explanations and customer-service assurances. Its timing and redeployment statements were intentions, not final outcomes.
Best Buy Co Inc / Carphone Warehouse Group plc
Records UK competition clearance, equal joint-business ownership and Geek Squad's earlier UK presence. Its expected completion date does not establish when completion occurred.
Carphone Warehouse Third-Quarter Trading Update, 24 January 2012
States that all eleven stores and Best Buy UK online had closed and gives the company's account of alternative roles offered to employees.
The Carphone Warehouse Group Annual Report 2009
Explains that the first big-box openings moved from 2009 to spring 2010 while the venture sought stronger sites and lease terms. Printed pp. 18–22; PDF pp. 18–22.
New BBED Limited Annual Report and Discontinued-Operation Note
Records 14 January 2012 as the last store closure and separates revenue, operating loss and exceptional closure costs in the discontinued-operation accounts.
Gallery
Credit
Rob Lawton, “Best Buy – West Thurrock”
Licence
Reuse and sharing, including commercial use, are allowed with attribution. Credit the creator, link the licence and identify any changes. ShareAlike applies to adaptations. Other rights may apply.
Caption
Best Buy’s British launch drew crowds before the venture had proved itself. Rob Lawton’s photograph, dated 2 May 2010, records a queue outside the Thurrock store during its first bank-holiday weekend, a useful counterpoint to the later withdrawal.
Credit
Rob Lawton, “Geek Squad Service Desk – Best Buy”
Licence
Reuse and sharing, including commercial use, are allowed with attribution. Credit the creator, link the licence and identify any changes. ShareAlike applies to adaptations. Other rights may apply.
Caption
Service was part of Best Buy’s pitch to British customers. Lawton’s period photograph of its Geek Squad desk shows the advice-and-support setting promoted alongside the electrical goods, without establishing how well that promise worked.