Best Buy, the largest electronics retailer in the U.S., has entered a new era with Jason Bonfig as its CEO. Bonfig, a 27-year veteran of the company, took over the role on November 1, succeeding Corie Barry. The move had been announced months prior, with Barry expressing confidence in Bonfig’s ability to accelerate the company’s strategy and take Best Buy into the future.
Bonfig’s tenure comes at a significant inflection point for the company. Many consumers are likely to upgrade their TVs, computers, or appliances over the next few years, and artificial intelligence is poised to usher in a wave of technological innovation. Best Buy is also increasingly making money in more ways than just selling physical products in stores, with its advertising business and third-party marketplace becoming bigger areas of focus.
New Era for Best Buy
One of the major themes expected to dominate Best Buy’s strategy under Bonfig is a refreshed approach to merchandising in the age of AI innovations. The company is trying to turn the page after a somewhat bruising 2025, when revenue declined 4.43% year over year. Bonfig and Barry have made the case that many shoppers are about to enter the replenishment cycle for TVs they bought during the pandemic, which creates a lucrative opportunity for Best Buy.
Best Buy is using this opportunity to try and sell consumers on a new type of TV: the RGB LED TV. The company has worked with vendor partners like LG and Samsung to secure retail exclusivity at launch and has trained more than 15,000 employees and vendor representatives on RGB LED TVs ahead of the launch. This is just one example of how Best Buy is likely to pursue a refreshed approach to category growth and merchandising under Bonfig.
However, other categories are still lagging, with comparable sales in gaming down in the second quarter. Best Buy recently launched a new area of its website dedicated to gaming, called Best Buy Gamers, to alert gamers to the latest news, promotions, and offers.
Rethinking Store Experience
Another major theme expected to dominate Best Buy’s strategy under Bonfig is rethinking the store experience. When Bonfig was announced as CEO in the spring, he laid out four major priorities, including improving the overall experience and continuing to be a human-powered and customer-focused company. The physical store is where many consumers still encounter Best Buy most frequently, and the company is aware that some of its older stores need refurbishment and rejuvenation.
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These are essentially shop-in-shops, with employees specially trained on products within that ecosystem.
Best Buy is also growing its retail media business, with Best Buy Ads on track to deliver 10% growth this year. The company’s third-party marketplace is experiencing stronger-than-expected performance and is expected to reach $1.3 billion GMV in the third quarter. The marketplace-advertising flywheel appears to be working, with Bonfig saying that the initiatives reinforce each other and drive reach, customer insights, and growth.
Growth and Challenges Ahead
As Bonfig takes the reins, he will need to keep all these engine parts humming along, including retail media, in-store experiences, and the third-party marketplace. With the company’s unique advantage as a category leader in consumer electronics, Best Buy is well-positioned to capture more of the valuable budgets of the world’s largest advertisers.
Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail, agrees that Best Buy is poised to benefit as replacement and innovation cycles pick up in electronics. However, he notes that many consumers remain cautious about big-ticket purchases, so every retailer, including Best Buy, needs to convince them to spend big.
The business is more mature compared to other retailers, and the company is working to take it into new areas, such as Best Buy CTV. This new offering combines the company’s first-party shopper audiences, device ownership data, and purchase-intent signals with premium CTV inventory from partners.
