Seven of the stores are in California, six in Illinois and six in the company's home state of Minnesota. The chain said it is also cutting 400 corporate jobs, trimming $800 million in costs and looking for a new CEO.
Best Buy plans to open 100 smaller, more profitable Best Buy Mobile stores, like the one that just opened in the Grand Teton Mall.
The company is trying to avoid the fate of Circuit City, which went out of business in 2009. It faces slower sales of expensive items like TVs, plus increased competition from Amazon.com and discount stores like Target.
Best Buy has about 1,400 locations in the United States. It has already closed two stores this year, one in Missouri and one in Arizona. Most of the rest of the 50 will close May 12.
For a complete list and the company's statement, follow this link: http://pr.bby.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=244152&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1683036&highlight=
If you're interested in Best Buy's long-term prospects, here's an interesting blog post from last week: http://contrarianedge.com/2012/04/10/not-buying-best-buy/
