The chain of stores specialized in technology explains that Mexico’s exit is part of a restructuring plan.
MEXICO CITY (Times Media Mexico) – The chain of stores specialized in technology, Best Buy, decided to leave its operations in Mexico to improve its organizational structure and strategic focus.
The company’s quarterly report explains that it is part of a $111 million restructuring in the third quarter of the fiscal year.
“This was primarily related to charges associated with the company’s decision this quarter to exit its Mexican operations and actions to better align its organizational structure with its strategic focus.”
This Tuesday, the US-based technology store chain, Best Buy, will announce to its investors that it will exit this market after 13 years of presence in Mexico.
As a result, starting December 31, 2020, it will close the 41 branches it has in Mexico in an orderly manner due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on its business, making its permanence in the country unviable.
“Despite this extraordinary work (of our collaborators), the effects of the pandemic have been severe, and it is not viable for us to maintain our business in Mexico,” stated Fernando Silva, president of Best Buy Mexico.
The firm said that it would provide help and support to its collaborators in this process of change and assured that the conditions for concluding the relationship with the company would be more favorable than those established by law.
Fernando Silva assured that this decision does not reflect in any way the efforts made by his team of collaborators.
“We should feel very proud of what we have achieved at Best Buy Mexico: we built an extraordinary team and established a distinctive culture. We transformed the way Mexicans interact and are inspired by technology, bringing it to millions of families to improve their lives. We built the #1 brand in technology, with iconic differentiators, and the customer has honored us with a growing market share,” Silva said.
The network said it would offer workshops to its employees for the effective use of different job search platforms, resume creation, and job interview simulations.
Additionally, Best Buy assured that it would cover Life Insurance for all its workers throughout 2021 and extend Major Medical Insurance to employees who have it for the same term.
“I can only thank from the bottom of my heart the employees and business partners who were part of this adventure during these almost 13 years,” said Silva.
Customer orders will be fulfilled.
The consumer electronics giant informed that it would fulfill the purchase orders in process and the purchases made during the next few weeks, which, he said, will be delivered in time and form.
Besides, Best Buy confirmed that it would make available to its customers its call center, social networks, and a list of frequently asked questions on its website.
It should be noted that Best Buy closed eight of its units in Mexico during this year, so to date, it has 41 branches in the country.
At the beginning of the country’s pandemic, Best Buy had to temporarily close its physical stores, initially using them only for online order delivery, later reopening its units gradually according to government regulations.
This impacted the chain’s results, although electronic products’ demand increased as home office and distance education began to grow in Mexico in recent months.
Best Buy, which has a presence in the United States and Canada, benefited from the new needs of consumers and the desires derived from home lifestyles; however, its executive statements in Mexico showed that this was not enough.
