Best Buy Testing Airport Vending Machines
By Alan Wolf -- TWICE, 8/11/2008
Minneapolis — Best Buy will begin testing CE vending machines in 12 U.S. airports this month.
 Best Buy is testing automated CE dispensers in 12 U.S. airports. |
The automated kiosks are branded “Best Buy Express” and carry cellphone and computer accessories, digital cameras and accessories, flash drives and portable storage devices, MP3 players, headphones, speakers, unlocked phones, portable gaming devices, gift cards, travel adapters and chargers.
Pricing is similar to that found in Best Buy stores, the retailer said.
Best Buy’s partner in the pilot program is ZoomSystems, a San Francisco-based IT and software company that has placed and maintains over 600 robotic “ZoomShops” in hotels, airports and other high-traffic locations nationwide for Apple, Macy’s, Sony and Rosetta Stone, a language-learning system.
Best Buy’s machines will be located in airport terminals in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and San Francisco. The rollout is expected to continue through Sept. 1.
“The launch of Best Buy Express is another way for Best Buy to provide consumers with the products they need from a brand they trust, even while they’re on the go,” said Chris Stidman, the retailer’s strategic planning VP. “Whether travelers are looking to purchase a last-minute gift or are in need of replacement for a lost, forgotten or broken product, these kiosks will allow them to purchase the product they want from a brand they trust.”
ZoomSystems CEO Gower Smith described the 30-square-foot robotic shops as “automated, self-service stores” that provide education and shopping information about products, rather than high-end vending machines.
“No vending machine can do what a ZoomShop can do. It is a different experience,” he said in a statement.
Consumers can learn about product offerings through a software program and video display, and can make purchases with a credit or debit card through a touchscreen user interface. The shops are remotely monitored from ZoomSystems’ headquarters, where each unit is tracked for maintenance and security, the company said.
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You guys are complete idiots. Like someone is going to go to the airport and go through security to get an ipod or something. It is actually genius as people might have forgotten something or find something they need while TRAVELING and buy it there on the spot...Far more convenient than getting in a taxi and going to CC or BBY. Bravo Best Buy for thinking outside the box.
Mike Mazza - 2008-12-8 21:20:00 EDT -
Wow! Best Buy has found something better than their in-store staff. Soon computers can make their corporate decisions and the executives can just go home.
Let's see if we can find more ways to eliminate jobs and then complain after we're out of work. Better yet customers should always want to pay the lowest price AND receive the best service, because that makes tons of sense, too.
Joe Bob - 2008-12-8 15:07:00 EDT -
Just what we need in the CE business, more ways to undermine conventional brick and mortar locations!
I guess based on the product education you get shopping in Best Buy stores, this actually might be a step up...
Morey G - 2008-12-8 08:52:00 EDT
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