Best Buy Expands Omnichannel Footprint With OpenAI Integration and Smaller-Format Stores

Best Buy is reaching customers in new ways, both in stores and online, executives said Thursday (Aug. 27) during the specialty consumer electronics retailer’s quarterly earnings call.

Best Buy has begun rolling out a new conversational artificial intelligence assistant called Ask Blue. The assistant can provide product knowledge, support resources, customer reviews, availability and pricing, Jason Bonfig, Best Buy chief customer, product and fulfillment officer and incoming CEO, effective Nov. 1, said during the call.

“Ask Blue will help customers figure out what tech is right for them,” Bonfig said. “For example, it can quickly compare products, find important differences between them, check fit or compatibility, and get support for common questions. Depending on the need, Ask Blue can guide a customer to self-service resources or connect them to a live specialist.”

Best Buy recently completed its commerce integration with OpenAI, enabling customers to discover products, receive recommendations and complete purchases within ChatGPT.

“We view this as an important step in expanding our digital ecosystem and positioning Best Buy at the forefront of emerging AI-enabled commerce experiences,” Bonfig said.

In another online channel, Best Buy will begin adding international sellers to its third-party marketplace later this quarter. The retailer launched its U.S. digital marketplace one year ago and required all sellers to have a U.S. physical presence.

“Last week marked one year since our launch of the U.S. marketplace, and we’re pleased with how it’s expanding our reach with new SKUs and categories,” Bonfig said.

In stores, Best Buy has implemented more than half of the 50 Meta Lab @ Best Buy spaces it announced June 8. These are in-store spaces that span about 900 square feet, are staffed by specially trained employees focused exclusively on the Meta ecosystem, and feature Meta’s AI glasses and virtual reality solutions.

“Although still early, customer response has been exceptionally strong and has exceeded our initial expectations,” Bonfig said. “Based on what we are seeing, we believe there is significant potential to expand this model to additional vendor partners.”

Best Buy is also repurposing space in some of its stores to add outlet experiences.

“We’ve replaced many standalone outlet locations,” Bonfig said. “Customers benefit from greater convenience while we benefit from stronger utilization of our existing footprint.”

Another way Best Buy is expanding the reach of its brick-and-mortar footprint is by adding smaller-format stores. These smaller stores enable Best Buy to extend its in-store experience to markets that can’t support its traditional store format.

“Although the strategy is still in its early stages, we are pleased with the customer response and encouraged by the performance we are seeing,” Bonfig said. “What is particularly exciting is the way these stores accelerate omnichannel engagement. Customers often begin their relationship with Best Buy through a store visit, but quickly adopt our app, our digital channels, membership programs and services. As a result, these locations act as both retail destinations and customer acquisition engines.”

During the company’s second quarter fiscal year 2027, which ended Aug. 1, Best Buy’s comparable sales increased 4.1%, with growth across almost all of its major product categories, according to a Thursday press release.

The largest drivers of comparable sales were computing, home theater and a collection of emerging categories that includes AI glasses, trading cards and health rings. The company saw a decline in the traditional gaming category.

Looking ahead, Best Buy raised its fiscal year 2027 comparable sales guidance to a range of 1.9% to 3.0%, up from its previous guidance of negative 1.0% to 1.0%.

Best Buy CEO Corie Barry said during the call: “Consistent with the past several quarters, we see a customer who is still spending but is value-focused and attracted to sales moments. Importantly, while customers continue to be thoughtful about big-ticket purchases, they are willing to spend on high price point products when they need to or when there is technology innovation.”