Best Buy begins e-commerce upgrades

BURNABY, BC—On the heels of its closure of Future Shop stores, Best Buy Canada is beginning to roll out e-commerce initiatives.

Introduced in March of this year, Delivery Promise is a new web tool that presents customers with an expected arrival date for their item as they browse product pages on BestBuy.ca, before their order is placed. Delivery Promise tracks an individual order to provide an accurate timeline on a product’s delivery, and is designed to respond uniquely to each customer. Delivery Promise will notify of a faster delivery option if one exists.

Launching this month, Ship-from-store will make available inventory previously confined to Best Buy stores, allowing customers shopping online greater access to a selection of items. This innovation limits the ‘Out of Stock’ screens sometimes seen on BestBuy.ca, will transform the company’s 192 stores into distribution centres, and will further streamline the omni-channel operating model nationwide.

“We are investing millions of dollars in our stores and online in order to enhance the customer experience and this is an important step,” said Thierry Hay-Sabourin, Vice President of eCommerce, Best Buy Canada.

Launching in the coming months, Marketplace will allow customers to shop for more products in more categories on BestBuy.ca. Canadian retailers will be able to use Best Buy Canada’s award-winning omni-channel infrastructure to enable return in store and reserve and pick-up capabilities.

“While we’re excited to partner with other Canadian retailers on Marketplace, we’re even more excited to continue innovating in the online space to provide our customers with an unparalleled experience,” said Hay-Sabourin. “We want to continue to bring the greatest assortment of products to our customers, and help retailers succeed, which is why are inviting other Canadian retailers to join us on our online Marketplace and enjoy our world-class eCommerce capabilities.”

These initiatives are part of a previously announced ongoing two-year investment of up to $200 million in Best Buy stores and BestBuy.ca.