Carphone Warehouse to axe 11 Best Buy consumer electronics stores

by liamssoft | November 6, 2011 at 01:39 pm

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Retailer Carphone Warehouse is understood to be planning the closure of 11 of its Best Buy consumer electronics stores, less than two years after they opened.

Best Buy UK made a loss of £62million in its first year and analysts expect a loss of £35million in the first half of 2011 alone.

The closure could be announced as early as Tuesday when the firm unveils half-year results, the Sunday Times reported, despite negotiations going on into the weekend.

Best Buy UK, which operates the 11 so-called big box stores across the south east and Midlands, employ 1,100 staff and were launched to great fanfare in 2009.

But consumer electronics has been one of the hardest-hit sectors during the downturn as the squeeze on household incomes has seen shoppers turn their backs on perceived luxury items.

The business, which launched as part of a joint venture with US retailer Best Buy, has invested heavily in marketing and promotional activity in a bid to get the brand off the ground, but has seen widening losses.

Best Buy currently has Big Box stores in Aintree, Bristol, Croydon, Derby, Enfield, Hayes, Hedge End, Merry Hill, Nottingham, Rotherham and Thurrock.

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