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| Microsoft suddenly decided to permanently close all of its stores |
Microsoft announced the final closure of its 83 stores on Friday. Instead, the focus will be on Microsoft.com online store, where customers can get support, sales, training and more.
The company said that members of the retail team will provide on-site support instead of in-store support. "All Microsoft employees have the opportunity to continue working for the company," a company spokesman told CNBC.
“With our product portfolio generally evolving into digital products, our online sales have grown and our talented team has emerged,” said David Porter, Vice President of Microsoft, in the company’s blog. “We thank our customers at the Microsoft Store and hope to continue their service with the online sales team on Microsoft Corporation. On the web. "
Almost a decade ago, Microsoft began expanding its local operations and opening several retail stores to create a marketing experience similar to the one offered by Apple. Consumers can go to the store before purchasing to try the company's software and new hardware.
Because of the new coronary virus (COVID-19) epidemic, it is believed that the company made this decision only after the store was temporarily closed in March.
Microsoft said that closing its physical site "will result in approximately $ 450 million before tax, or 5 cents per share," for the quarter ended June 30.
The company said: "Microsoft will continue to invest in the interface of its digital store on Microsoft.com, Windows (Xbox) and (Windows) to reach more than 1.2 billion people in 190 markets every month." Add: "The company will also reinvent the space to serve all customers, including Microsoft Experience Centers in London, New York, Sydney and Redmond."
It is worth noting that the company's decision was taken a few days after the announcement of the end of the game mixer service (mixer) next month, saying: You will share with Facebook encouraging users to get the latest games Use: It's Facebook Gaming.