Best Buy to Close Dozens of Stores, Cut Employees

Best Buy officials announced today they will close 50 of their big box stores and lay off 400 employees, according to a news release.

The news comes after the Richfield-based company released its 2011 fourth quarter earnings. Best Buy officials said the closures and layoffs would save the company around $800 million annually. Burnsville has one Best Buy store, but the company has not yet specified which stores would close.

The news of closures and downed profits are not a surprise to many, as Best Buy reported shortfalls after its third quarter in 2011 as well. In January 2012, and also suggested it was getting closer and closer to bankruptcy every day.

Going forward, Best Buy's retail store strategy is to scale back existing stores to a more manageable size. These "at-scale" test stores will debut in the Twin Cities and San Antonio metro areas before the 2012 holiday season.

"These changes will also help lower our overall cost structure," CEO of Best Buy Brian J. Dunn said in the release. "We intend to invest some of these cost savings into offering new and improved customer experiences and competitive prices—which will help drive revenue. And, over time, we expect some of the savings will fall to the bottom line."

Burnsville Patch will update readers as more information becomes available. The Star Tribune reported that Dunn was speaking to investors this morning on Twitter.