The churn in the world of big box store retailing continued as Best Buy’s CEO and Director Brian Dunn, a 28-year veteran with the company who took over as CEO in 2009, resigned just two weeks after announcing a mammoth $1.7 billion loss in the fourth quarter.  A large part of that loss was due to the shuttering of the company’s UK operations, but it also reflects continued strong competition from online retailers, who offer the same sorts of consumer electronics, often with free shipping, no sales tax, and aggressive discounts.

 

In late March Best Buy announced the shuttering of 50 big box stores and the laying off of 400 employees (see "Best Buy Closing 50 Stores") as part of its strategy to go smaller and compete with Apple and other phone stores for a bigger share of the fast-growing smart-phone and tablet business.  Best Buy has already shifted its focus several times.  First it reduced the space granted to audio CDs, and then to DVDs and Blu-ray discs as home entertainment slowed.  With competition for sales of big screen TVs intensifying, Best Buy is pivoting again, attempting to reduce its retail footprint, and putting more effort toward sales of smaller electronic devices.

 

Best Buy director G. Mike Mikan will take over as interim CEO while the company searches for a replacement.