Best Buy to Repair Apple Products at All Stores

Apple announced that Best Buy now offers authorized repairs on its products at every one of the retailer’s stores. This gives consumers an important alternative to visiting their nearest Apple store — if there even is one — for service on an iPhone or Mac. Repairs are done with genuine Apple parts and are fully backed by the company, just as if Apple had done the work itself. Best Buy has offered Apple repairs at many locations for some time now, but the completed expansion brings that number up to nearly 1,000 stores. The deal marks a major expansion of Apple’s third-party repair service network. The company said there are now more than 1,800 third-party service providers in its network, a threefold increase compared to three years ago.

Total Retail's Take: This is yet another example of retailers partnering together for the benefit of both organizations — and consumers. Apple significantly expands its third-party repair service network, a major convenience to customers that own its products. That added convenience figures to improve customers’ view of Apple, engendering loyalty to the brand. For Best Buy, the primary benefit of the deal is additional foot traffic into its stores. With nearly two-thirds of Americans owning an Apple device, there are plenty of product repairs to go around. Customers coming into Best Buy stores to have their Apple devices fixed are likely to browse and make purchases. Retailers are finding that collaborating with other businesses can expand their reach and build buzz, as well as expose them to new ideas and tactics.