In a bid to compete more directly with Apple, Samsung has announced that in the coming months it will open 1400 Samsung Experience shops within electronics stores around the US.
Following an agreement made by Samsung and retailer Best Buy in December, the venture will see 900 stores open across the country by May, with many of the stores opening for business as soon as this month. It’s hoped that the entire project will be rolled out by the end of June, reports All Things D. Here in Australia we only have two Samsung stores. Count ’em. Two.
It’s this kind of speed and scale which prompted Samsung to abandon initial plans of opening its own chain of stores in the US, instead joining forces with Best Buy. While it might not carry the same prestige as a Samsung-only store, the ease of roll-out makes up for it. And, as Ketrina Dunagan, the Samsung VP heading the retail effort, explains, “seventy per cent of consumers live within 16 kilometres of a Best Buy.”
In essence, then, they’ll be like Apple Store-lites, offering a similar, but scaled-down, version of the services that Jobs and co currently offer. But for a first dabble in the world of physical retails, perhaps that’s no bad thing. [All Things D]