Best Buy Opens 2 New Stores as Incoming CEO Pushes 12,000-Square-Foot Format
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Aug 1
Best Buy Opens 2 New Stores as Incoming CEO Pushes 12,000-Square-Foot Format
3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Aug 1
Summary
Two new Best Buy stores opened this week in Jonesboro, Arkansas, and Cape Cod, Massachusetts, showcasing incoming CEO Jason Bonfig’s plan to use smaller footprints to restore long-term growth.
Bonfig said 12,000- to 15,000-square-foot stores can enter markets that cannot support traditional 20,000- to 25,000-square-foot locations, while still lifting app use and digital sales when stores open closer to customers.
Jonesboro’s 18,000-square-foot store returns Best Buy to a market it left after a tornado destroyed its prior location; the 28,000-square-foot Cape Cod opening reflects a broader push to match store size to local demand.
The strategy comes as Best Buy tries to reverse years of weak demand tied to lower consumer confidence, slower housing and a post-Covid spending pull-forward, with shares down about 20% from their 2021 peak.
For the current fiscal year, Best Buy expects comparable sales between down 1% and up 1%, while Bonfig also aims to tap AI-driven shopping and new products without replacing the retailer’s human-led service model.