Best Buy Will Close Original Eq-Life Store: Richfield Traffic Off 15% Since Holiday
Posted on: Friday, 7 April 2006, 06:00 CDT
By Scott Carlson, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
Apr. 7--Best Buy Co. has pulled the plug on the maiden store of its eq-life retail concept.
The 18,000 square-foot eq-life store at Southdale Square in Richfield closed Monday, just 15 months after opening to much fanfare as Best Buy's initial test store that offers a range of products and services from massages and vitamins to MP3 players and heart defibrillators.
Locations in Oak Park Heights and St. Paul's Grand Avenue remain open.
In an interview Thursday, eq-life President Mike Marolt cited a 15 percent drop in the Richfield store traffic since Christmas and parent Best Buy's push to cut operating expenses as factors in the closing.
With Best Buy seeking to cut more than $300 million a year in selling and general corporate expenses, "We are looking to be more efficient in what dollars we are deploying," Marolt said. On Monday, Best Buy said it was laying off 300 employees at its Richfield headquarters.
The closing of the Richfield eq-life store affects about 70 workers, Marolt said.
In light of Best Buy's cost pressures, "we need to focus on the two prototype stores that we are committed to," he added.
Based on customer feedback at Richfield, eq-life designed its prototype stores in St. Paul and Oak Park Heights to incorporate several cosmetic changes, Marolt said. For example, the Richfield store had metal shelves and a tile floor, while the two newer stores have carpeting and wood floors, he said. The name eq-life is short for equilibrium and lifestyle.
"Customers are voting for the newer prototypes," Marolt said, noting customer traffic at Grand Avenue has been exceeding company expectations. No further openings are planned, he added.
Scott Carlson covers retail and can be reached at scarlson@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5470.
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Copyright (c) 2006, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
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Source: Saint Paul Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minn.)
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