Dive Brief:
- Best Buy is readying for the launch of its digital platform, Best Buy Marketplace, the electronics retailer announced Thursday. The retailer will launch the new platform this summer, per a company blog post.
- With the new platform, third-party sellers can integrate their product assortment onto Best Buy’s website and mobile app, the company said.
- Best Buy is partnering with enterprise marketplace tech company Mirakl on its marketplace launch. Mirakl has worked with other major retailers including Macy’s, Nordstrom and Kroger, per the company’s website.
Dive Insight:
With Best Buy Marketplace, sellers will be able to “expand their reach, break through and grow their brand,” the company said in a statement. They will also have access to its Best Buy Ads and partnership opportunities.
This isn’t Best Buy’s first attempt at developing a marketplace. The electronics retailer previously integrated a third-party marketplace into its business model but ultimately closed down its operations after five years due to other priorities and confusion among customers.
This time around, Best Buy hopes the marketplace will bolster its offerings to tech consumers.
“We’re incredibly excited to roll out Best Buy Marketplace later this year and provide our customers an expanded assortment of products, new categories and the ability to bring them emerging tech more quickly,” Frank Bedo, chief marketplace and e-commerce officer at Best Buy, said in a statement. “Not only will we be able to introduce new brands, but these sellers will also have the opportunity to get in front of a much larger audience of shoppers alongside other reputable brands.”
Best Buy’s new third-party marketplace strategy comes amid revenue declines. In its third-quarter earnings report, the company said revenue decreased 3.2% year over year to $9.4 billion, while comparable sales declined 2.9%, as did operating income. The company reduced its full-year revenue guidance from between $41.3 billion and $41.9 billion to between $41.1 billion and $41.5 billion.
After a tough couple of years, electronics as a category has shown some signs of recovery. In December, electronics sales grew 5.4% year over year, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Census Bureau.
