It’s no secret that video game retailing giant GameStop has been struggling in recent years with lagging sales and store closures. The company is hoping to reinvent itself as more and more consumers shift toward online shopping and digital purchases.
To that end, GameStop is looking to test different store concepts. According to a report from GameSpot, some stores will focus on competitive gaming and cultivating a local e-sports scene while others will focus on retro games and hardware. The stores will first be piloted in select markets, although it’s not yet known where that might be.
From GameSpot:
The company is partnering with a “global innovation design firm,” R/GA, to create “streamlined” GameStop stores. The two companies are working together on designing and testing out the stores, which GameStop says in a news release will introduce “new ways” for shoppers to try games before they guy them. The stores themselves will have a “unique layout and purpose.”
Will this be enough to save their brick and mortar stores? Time will tell, but one has to suspect that more store closures are in the not-too-distant future as the need for multiple neighborhood stores in the same city becomes a thing of the past. Hopefully this plan to reinvent stores will stave off as many closures as possible.
