Here's an update on a story that we posted late last year. It speaks to the need that the big box retailers have in creating new experiences and product offerings. You'll hear more about this on Thursday during the BBBT for Category Killers.
Best Buy test store has wellness focus
Best Buy Co.'s latest attempt to attract more women is a test store that offers everything from massages and vitamins to MP3 players and defibrillators.
The store dubbed eq-life, which is short for equilibrium and lifestyle, opens Feb. 4 in Richfield, Minn. The 18,000-square-foot store is two miles from Best Buy's headquarters, but it's light-years from the company's persona as the nation's largest retailer of consumer electronics.
It (eq-life) is kind of wacky," said Lynne Robertson, president of Fame, a Minneapolis-based retail branding and marketing firm. "The question is whether it will be convenience or confusion for consumers because these ideas (health, wellness and technology) don't reside together."
Where the typical Best Buy store is heavy with electronic gadgets like digital cameras and plasma TV sets, eq-life is an eclectic mix of services and 10,000 items including health books, shampoo, exercise equipment, vitamins and hairstyling. Items range from a $4.99 flute-music CD to a $2,199 Medtronic heart defibrillator. You can even get a cup of java at Caribou Coffee.
After more than 18 months of market research, eq-life executives expect the test store's primary patrons will be women 35 and older, who work outside the home, have families and are pressed for time. Still, executives say it will be appealing to men who are health-conscious and active.
Best Buy chose the Twin Cities to test eq-life because of the high interest among area consumers in balancing their well-being with work, the company said.
"The essence of what we are trying to do is create a more balanced life for the health and wellness of our customers," eq-life President Mike Marolt said last week as he guided visitors on a tour of the store.
Marolt said eq-life brings together products and services that are spread across several types of retail stores. These products and services, which can be found in supermarkets, pharmacies, health and sports stores, account for $600 billion in annual sales in the United States.
Even the limited selection of electronics, such as MP3 players, makes sense, Marolt said. The digital devices make good company for people who want to break up the monotony of working out.
Marolt said the store's sale of automated external heart defibrillators ties in with its theme of "bringing technology to health applications."
The store also is designed to be a comfortable visit for men, Marolt said. Still, its main goal is to draw women as eq-life is painted primarily in sage green, has curving "canyon walls" and signs touting such things as "health solutions" and "find yourself."
The store will be heavy on services: 50-minute massages to free help from Best Buy's Geek Squad about how to use personal computers better.
Industry experts see eq-life as part of Best Buy's strategy to attract more female shoppers and possibly, down the road, give it another retail growth avenue.
"They (Best Buy) continue to strive to think outside the box," said Alan Rifkin, an analyst at Lehman Bros.
Link: Best Buy test store has wellness focus.
Link: Experience Manifesto: TWICE- Best Buy Begins Rolling Out Customer-Centric Stores.
Flat screen tv's are the best thing since sliced bread. I prefer plasma tv's over LCD. They have better picture quality and typically have a longer life.
Posted by: TV Wall Mounts | August 11, 2009 at 11:55 PM