The Inability of Best Buy to Cope with the Pressure from the Competitors

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Case Analysis: Best Buy
Best Buy, one of the world's leaders in the retail industry, has quite a remarkable history. The case study by Wells and Ellsworth outlines the events that have unfolded in the company from inception to 2012. Just like any other company in the industry, Best Buy has had up and downs. The case study highlights stiff competition from other industry players as a major problem to the organization. Other multinational retail merchants such as Walmart took the market by storm, thanks to their competitive prices that Best Buy could not match. With online retailing that had become a significant element of most traditional retailers, which Best Buy has ventured into, Amazon proved to be the leading industry player in this segment. The inability of Best Buy to cope with the pressure from the competitors led to the company's struggle with entry into the international markets, reduction of business operation, and contemplation of selling the company to their biggest shareholder (Wells and Ellsworth 3).
Competition in business is bound to arise, and companies should always anticipate challenges from stiff competitors and consequently strive to find points of competitive advantage. Competitive product pricing is one of the key areas that Best Buy should have addressed to rule out pricing as the main factor driving them out of business. This can be attained by lowering the overall production costs and costs incurred in the supply chain (Wu et al. 5). Being a jack of all trades is never a good strategy in business. Best Buy needs to identify its niche and build exceptional excellence. One of the leading strategies that Best Buy can employ to help it capture the international markets is through mergers, acquisitions and strategic partnership. Establishing mergers with international companies that have mastered the consumer market in their localities can help Best Buy expand its customer base as well as leverage on the strength of the acquired new partner company. Leaders with a global mindset can be a useful addition to Best Buy's ambition in entering the international market. These leaders not only have relevant competencies in dealing with different cultures but also in the identification of the market behaviors and consumer wants.
Best Buy PESTEL Analysis
Political
Best Buy is a multinational firm whose operation spans international boundaries, and thus the company is subject to different political environments and policies specific to certain jurisdictions. The political and policy issues likely to influence Best Buy's business operations include tax policies that vary significantly from one jurisdiction to another, minimum wages, occupational and safety policies, regulatory issues, and even corruption. In most jurisdiction...