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Thread: Best Buy in trouble?

  1. #1
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    Best Buy in trouble?

    Forbes is reporting that Best Buy is in trouble.
    Amazon is their main competitor but wonder how much people will buy from Amazon if there is no stores left to go and touch and feel the product.


    http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/money/consum...ut-of-business
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  2. #2
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    My last experience with Best Buy in 2010 was with a product ten days outside of warranty that failed.
    For $1800, they told me to shop for a replacement computer.
    I did, elsewhere.

    If a brick and mortar store offers no more service than an e-tailer, at higher costs, then they deserve to fail.

  3. #3
    I usually don't set foot in Best Buy to begin with because I think the environment is obnoxious. I guess it's a combination of little things, but loud music when you walk in the door, too many people in your face, folks trying to sell you extended warranties, and when you get down to it, prices for accessories that are horrible and large items that can be bought elsewhere for less....

    .... I just get the sense that they're looking for suckers when I'm in there (sales associates trying to upsell folks on $100 TV cables that are $10 shipped on ebay, computer adapters that are $80, when a generic is $8 shipped on ebay, and in my case, the HP brand name version of the same thing was $22 on ebay ...), and that genuine honest service with parsimony occurs only by luck of getting a sales associate who works that way, not by company policy.

    It's just my opinion, but I suspect it's too much data mining and policy setting based on what's perceived to work in the short term. I haven't been in mine in years, and it's literally across the intersection from my development.

    When my TV conked out unexpectedly on a friday night last year, I went to target instead, right next to best buy, and there was no loud obnoxious music, nobody trying to sell me an extended warranty, just a simple straight up opinion from the guy in the TV section about what folks have been happy with and a quick transaction. In another circumstance, I might've shopped more (but not at BB), but we had company over for the weekend, and there were football games on that guests wanted to see. Not shopping around and going straight to target cost me $30 on the particular model I bought. BB wouldn't have been lower, but even if it were the low price, I'd pay $30 more just to avoid the environment there.

  4. #4
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    My wife read that last night and mentioned it to me. I personally never had an issue with Best Buy but tended to only buy my computers and accessories there when they were on sale, with the occasional CD or Bluray. There is just too much competition and large purchases are easy and cheap on the internet. I am actually sad to see them go, it is one less option I have, I like having lots of options.
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  5. #5
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    It doesn't surprise me.
    Most of what they have is pretty much priced at full MSRP, and better prices are easily found in surrounding Brick and Mortar stores, let alone Internet shopping.
    I've never bought much in them, but I still don't like to see folks get put out of work for poor corporate business strategies.
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  6. #6
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    I think best buy could be a lot more appealing by doing two things.
    1. Replace every 2 high pressure 18 year old sales people peddling the latest fad with zero knowledge with one 18 year old that is paid fairly and trained well
    2. Have good prices to begin with. Most times you can bargain with a manager and get a good price. But the hassle isn't worth it or people just don't know you can do it.

    Until they do that I can't imagine their business going anywhere but down.
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  7. #7
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    I buy at least 95% of my electronics sight unseen. I generally don't look at electronics in the store. My 50" plasma TV I bought in early 2010 I had never seen one until it hit my doorstep. I did a LOT of reading online first.

    The only time I ever buy at Best Buy is if they have some really good deal, or if I need something right now. I might buy one item a year there. I go to Best Buy most often to recycle electronics for free. Best Buy simply can't compete on price and I don't need anything they offer in the store. Of course, Best Buy is going to push extended warranties as they are the most profitable item in the store generally. Best Buy used to report how much profit they made from extended warranties and it was a good percentage of total profit.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Matthews View Post
    My last experience with Best Buy in 2010 was with a product ten days outside of warranty that failed.
    I can think of many reasons to not shop at Best Buy, but expecting them to replace something out of warranty is not one of them...... ?????

  9. #9
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    Yeah I was kinda thinking the same. How many days out of warranty is the cutoff for still being in warranty? What if it fails the day after that?


  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Robert McGowen View Post
    I can think of many reasons to not shop at Best Buy, but expecting them to replace something out of warranty is not one of them...... ?????
    +1 I might expect an extra day IF it failed the day before and it took me until the next day to get it in but thats it. They don't say about 2 years warranty. Thats the time I might have to kick myself for not getting an extended warranty, though I never do.
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  11. #11
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    I read the Forbes report too. Shopping at Best Buy is kinda like shopping at a car lot.

  12. #12
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    I was wondering about the warranty thing too. Unless the buyer bought an extended warranty Best Buy wouldn't be the one to honor the warranty in most cases. One would need to contact the manufacturer. They do have some house brands that may be taken care of in store, but even those probably have a warranty center.

    Some warranties may be covered for a few extra days, but they have to cut things off at some point. It doesn't hurt to ask for special consideration, but don't be upset when they say no.

  13. #13
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    For those of you interested, there's a class action suit pending with HP over their DV series laptops having this kind of failure. This was known by Best Buy when the product was sold, and not disclosed to buyers.
    One day the laptop worked fine, the next day it didn't. HP has denied culpability with the failure, claiming the chip makers are at fault. Given that there was neither a warning from BB or an offer to assist.

    Not being a computer professional, I had no inkling that this failure lurked until it happened.
    My beef with Best Buy is that I indeed purchased the extended warranty, and the failure occurred one year and ten days after this purchase.

    I had $1800 to purchase a replacement - provided they made some effort on my behalf. They declined, as was their right, and I decamped to purchase online.
    If these things are destined to fail (as it would appear) then they're disposable commodities. What, exactly do you pay for at a retailer, if not the relationship?
    If a seller merely pushes a box out the door and doesn't consider a buyer's sales record - they're history.

    Anyone who has ever worked in sales knows how much cheaper it is to keep a happy customer than to find a replacement to that revenue stream.
    Here's my point - if a brick and mortar seller has no sympathy for the plight of repeat customers, we won't repeat our business.

    I don't know the consensus regarding big box retailers, here, but they seem to limit choices and depress quality -
    at higher prices than I can find online. A pointless enterprise, that.
    Last edited by Bruce Page; 01-07-2012 at 1:20 AM. Reason: Removed inappropriate language.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Matthews View Post
    For those of you interested, there's a class action suit pending with HP over their DV series laptops having this kind of failure. This was known by Best Buy when the product was sold, and not disclosed to buyers.
    One day the laptop worked fine, the next day it didn't. HP has denied culpability with the failure, claiming the chip makers are at fault. Given that there was neither a warning from BB or an offer to assist.
    Since Best Buy didn't disclose the issue, how do you know they knew about it?

    My co-worker had an HP laptop that failed due to some sort of known chip issue. HP replaced all of the laptops with new ones. The replacement laptops were really cheap ones, but a lot better than nothing for laptops out of warranty. I don't know if this is the same issue you were having or not.
    Last edited by Bruce Page; 01-07-2012 at 1:21 AM.

  15. #15
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    Last word on the subject - no need to flog this.

    Our purchase date was after the HP/NVidia GPU class action suit opened. It's possible that a retailer the size of Best Buy would be unaware of such problems from a large supplier.
    It's also improbable. Here's the bottom line - their indifference to the customer spending serious money in an economic downturn is indicative of their approach.

    "We sell disposable stuff to dispensible clients that are easily replaced."

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