The news: Best Buy aims to appeal to shoppers on multiple fronts this holiday season.

The retailer is leaning into experiences to drive shoppers to its stores.

• 50 stores will have an immersive Meta Lab @ Best Buy experience this holiday, where shoppers will be able to participate in interactive demos, get personalized fittings, and interact with dedicated Meta sales specialists.
• Best Buy is adding displays and hands-on experiences to bolster discovery in categories like collectibles, wearables, and appliances.
• Starting in October, select stores will feature dedicated Google store experiences where customers can explore laptops and other products.

It’s also expanding AI shoppability. ChatGPT users will be able to surface gift ideas and buy items from Best Buy without leaving the platform this holiday season.

Why it matters: Best Buy’s multipronged approach reflects the need for retailers to reach shoppers any way they can during an uncertain holiday season. While multiple forecasts—including ours—expect relatively healthy growth during the period, much of it may reflect inflation rather than an increase in underlying demand.

Best Buy’s focus on stores underscores the importance of physical retail to holiday shoppers. Over half of US retail leaders expect their physical stores to generate the highest volume of holiday orders this year, making the channel more important than third-party marketplaces like Amazon and social commerce, per a Narvar and eTail Insights survey.

Implications for retailers: Retailers need to be present wherever people choose to shop this year, whether on AI platforms, in-store, on third-party marketplaces such as Amazon, or retailers’ own apps or websites. Best Buy’s stores will enable hands-on discovery, demonstrations, and specialist assistance that complement digital shopping. In this current value-conscious environment, shoppers are more inclined to concentrate spending with companies that can deliver compelling experiences, strong value, and convenience.