President Calderon opens the first Best Buy store in Mexico

Eduardo García Fabregat, President of Best Buy Mexico, expressed the company’s commitment to expanding its investment in the coming years

Tlalnepantla, Estado de Mexico, December 5th, 2008 – Emphasizing its confidence and commitment with Mexico, Best Buy opened today its first store in Mexico, located in Mundo E Shopping Center, at the northern part of Mexico City, in the presence of Felipe Calderon, President of Mexico, Enrique Peña Nieto, Governor of the State of Mexico, Marco Antonio Rodriguez Hurtado, Tlalnepantla Municipality Mayor, and Mr. Gerardo Ruiz Mateos, Minister of Economy.

In front of more than 600 attendees, the President of Mexico, Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, stressed his confidence in the success of the leader electronics store in the country and congratulated picking Mexico as the recipient of this new investment. He added that because of the store’s format; Mexican consumers will be benefited as competition improves the industry. He pointed out he bought his first laptop at a Best Buy store.

The Governor of the State of Mexico, Enrique Peña Nieto, welcomed Best Buy to Mexican land and invited private investment to continue working in the State.

Bob Willett, CEO of Best Buy International, stressed Best Buy’s confidence in the Mexican economy, in spite of the difficult global context. He also mentioned that the first store in Mexico is highly relevant for the company, since it represents the launching of a long-term project in the country to satisfy a $14 billion dollar worth market in consumer electronics. He added: “Ours are long term plans, we arrived to Mexico to revolutionize the way retail stores work and this can only be achieved if people are able to know our vision and choose it over other options. Our strategy is to get to different cities and make the difference through our customer service. He highlighted that the company’s expansion plans could represent the creation of thousands of jobs throughout the Mexican Republic.

Regarding the global situation he commented: “We must be more effective, much more efficient, with much more training”. As a sign of Best Buy’s commitment with the community, he added that 1% of the grand opening sales will be donated to an institution chosen by their employees.

The store, located at Mundo E, is the company’s second largest in the world, and will have 250 employees – known as “Blue Shirts” –, trained to offer the best service and technical assistance experience, adapted to the Mexican consumer’s buying profiles, preferences and needs. It is important to mention that, unlike other stores in the country, they will work not under commission, but they pay will be related to the quality delivered to the client. As part of the opening plan, the Blue Shirts have been trained for over three months.

Besides the guidance, the buying experience at Best Buy includes the option to access an advanced post-sale technical support and service, thanks to a team of technology experts named “Geek Squad”, which offers quick and reliable solutions.

The store not only revolutionalizes the current selling formats in Mexico, but also brings to the market a different line of products from those known at the United States. For instance, there is the “Gourmet” area, specialized in kitchen electronic goods, a musical instruments area and a coffee shop in partnership with The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf.

Best Buy Mexico will also offer a loyalty program known as Reward Zone that will be attached to the Blue Key and Steel Key credit cards.

By the end of its visit to the 5,500 squared meter store, Best Buy’s managerial staff thanked the attendees for their presence in the event, and invited them to keep an eye on the company’s development plans in Mexico.

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About Best Buy Co., Inc.
With operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, and China, Best Buy is a multinational retailer of technology and entertainment products and services with a commitment to growth and innovation. The Best Buy family of brands and partnerships collectively generates more than $40 billion annual revenue and includes brands such as Best Buy, Audiovisions, The Carphone Warehouse, Future Shop, Geek Squad, Jiangsu Five Star, Magnolia Audio Video, Napster, Pacific Sales Kitchen and Bath Centers, The Phone House and Speakeasy. Approximately 165,000 employees apply their talents to help bring the benefits of these brands to life for customers through retail locations, multiple call centers and Web sites, in-home solutions, product delivery and activities in our communities. Community partnership is central to the way we do business at Best Buy. In fiscal 2008, we donated a combined $31.8 million to improve the vitality of the communities where our employees and customers live and work. For more information about Best Buy, visit www.bestbuyinc.com