Should BB and FS just merge banners?

[smartcdn]

Since Future Shop is really Best Buy with different name, banner, and different colored golf shirts for it's employees, should they just merge and save on website and flyer advertisement costs?

Both have the same products generally. Same price guarantee promise and same lame excuses when it comes time to honor it.

Thoughts?

[kevinyvr]

Agreed, but they keep separate brands to maintain the illusion of competition when really, the money goes to the same place in the end. They can also make you buy gift cards for the 2 separate stores and say they are not interchangeable, when infact, I've used BB gift cards for FS online and at FS stores (as long as you can convince the cashier to plug in the numbers instead of swiping).. and vice-versa.

[uber_shnitz]

Yup it's really just to maintain the brands and people's idea of both. People still have "different" experiences at either store so they still consider them separate even though it's the same brand.

BB and FS are hardly the only companies that own various stores. Aldo shoes for example owns Little Burgundy, Locale shoes, and Globo Shoes. All those stores have similar websites and similar stores (well arguably how much can shoe stores vary :lol:) yet Aldo maintains the stores for various reasons.

[Hairball]

Best Buy does have the reward zone point system, I don't think FS does, so there is one benefit of the "competition". But for the most part I will just buy things at which ever place is cheaper.

[kevinyvr]

But for the most part I will just buy things at which ever place is cheaper.

That's when you price match one with the other :)

[smartcdn]

Agreed, but they keep separate brands to maintain the illusion of competition when really, the money goes to the same place in the end. They can also make you buy gift cards for the 2 separate stores and say they are not interchangeable, when infact, I've used BB gift cards for FS online and at FS stores (as long as you can convince the cashier to plug in the numbers instead of swiping).. and vice-versa.

Thanks for the gift card tips... I didn't know you could interchangeably use them.

[cuddlydragon]

I wish they would merge. They probably lose a ton of money from price matching.

[Pauly Boy]

I wish they'd just close their doors permanently, but then I think about all the people that need $90 Monster cables & I wonder...what would they do?

[laststar]

Most of the Best Buy and Future Shop in Montreal are literally next to each other... How dumb is that?

[redgrandam]

Most of the Best Buy and Future Shop in Montreal are literally next to each other... How dumb is that?

Same here. One FS and BB are a block away from each other. At the other end of the city a future shop closed and re opened as a best buy. Then a new future shop opened on the same road about a 5 min drive away. At least there is some distance there. But the two a block apart is silly. At least spread them out to service customers better!!!

[uber_shnitz]

The Future Shop Liquidation Store is actually an ex-Best Buy location too :lol:

[brunes]

I agree having two banners is stupid but merging them is expensive and complicated. Aside from all the legal costs, which would be in the tens of millions, and the re-branding costs at the "lost" brand - which would be in the tens (maybe hundreds) of millions - you have other problems as well, such as the fact the stores are not the same. Future Shop sells appliances, Best Buy does not. Future Shop has commission, but best buy doesn't. Best buy actually sells some SKUs that FutureShop does not, and vice-versa... and that is not easily remedied since sometimes this is a result supplier agreements.

Which policies do you keep and which do you discard? You don't want to lose appliances since that is a big part of their business in Canada - so maybe they keep future shop but remove comission sales? That probably would mean however that they would have to re-hire a lot of employees - another expense...

In the end, the whole ordeal would cost hundreds of millions of dollars - and what would the outcome be? Would they get increased sales from this? If not - then why bother.

[Hunter316]

Same here. One FS and BB are a block away from each other. At the other end of the city a future shop closed and re opened as a best buy. Then a new future shop opened on the same road about a 5 min drive away. At least there is some distance there. But the two a block apart is silly. At least spread them out to service customers better!!!

The reason that they are close to each other is to create a destination. If someone walks into a Future Shop and does not buy they will usually go to the next closest store. If that store is a Best Buy then the company still gets the money. This is also done to keep people from driving across town to a competitor.

[redgrandam]

The reason that they are close to each other is to create a destination. If someone walks into a Future Shop and does not buy they will usually go to the next closest store. If that store is a Best Buy then the company still gets the money. This is also done to keep people from driving across town to a competitor.

Good point for sure. It's all marketting really. Just seems silly paying lease on two properties when you don't have to. Then again they seem successful. So who are we to judge.

[Saturate]

I wish they would merge. They probably lose a ton of money from price matching.

But then you lose out on their price-matching each other plus the 10% off the difference. And I believe FS has some room for haggling since they have commission.

[Kris81]

No. i like going into bestbuy to buy something without 50 sales people trying to sell me a warranty or some other useless crap

[kocoman]

Why BestBuy sells the Logitech K760 keyboard for $99, while Future shop sells it for $89 ?

[Hairball]

I agree having two banners is stupid but merging them is expensive and complicated. Aside from all the legal costs, which would be in the tens of millions, and the re-branding costs at the "lost" brand - which would be in the tens (maybe hundreds) of millions - you have other problems as well, such as the fact the stores are not the same. Future Shop sells appliances, Best Buy does not. Future Shop has commission, but best buy doesn't. Best buy actually sells some SKUs that FutureShop does not, and vice-versa... and that is not easily remedied since sometimes this is a result supplier agreements.

Which policies do you keep and which do you discard? You don't want to lose appliances since that is a big part of their business in Canada - so maybe they keep future shop but remove comission sales? That probably would mean however that they would have to re-hire a lot of employees - another expense...

In the end, the whole ordeal would cost hundreds of millions of dollars - and what would the outcome be? Would they get increased sales from this? If not - then why bother.

I don't pay attention to the appliances a great deal as that's not something you often get day to day, but Best Buy does have appliances. My impression is that they don't have as large of a selection as Future Shop.

[knorot]

I would have to agree that it would probably cost them more than what it is worth to merge. As for different product, I am sure there are agreements in place, I remember seeing a red camera as a FS exclusive and the blue one was for BB, not that colour effects the overall performance.

As for appliances, yes BB does carry some small to bar fridge size ones, but FS carries the full line of large appliances.

[Psubs]

Why BestBuy sells the Logitech K760 keyboard for $99, while Future shop sells it for $89 ?

So you can PM it at BB for $88 and not buy it somewhere else for $89.

[Swswswish]

So should they call it Best Shop, or Future Buy?

[woof]

It's the old game we used to play as kids. You've got one person on the left and one person on the right. When another kid comes along up the middle you squish him. From a business point of view the two chains gives BB/FS the opportunity to squish any new competitor which tries to enter their market. By doing it as two "independent" chains it's hard to file a monopoly complaint against them.

[kocoman]

So you can PM it at BB for $88 and not buy it somewhere else for $89.

They just tell me to "go to futureshop and buy it, then show me the receipt, then I will do the PM, then you return the item back to FS"... I think gas money/time is worth more than that.

[redgrandam]

They just tell me to "go to futureshop and buy it, then show me the receipt, then I will do the PM, then you return the item back to FS"... I think gas money/time is worth more than that.

Lol I hope you didn't actually do that. Just show them the price on their website.

[opento]

So should they call it Best Shop, or Future Buy?

Shop & Buy

[Psubs]

Shop & Buy

Shop.ca + Buy.com?