JB Hi-Fi to join Dick Smith as stockist of entry-level Inspiron PCs and laptops
Dell has signed up electronics chain JB Hi-Fi as a stockist of its PCs and laptops, giving the former online-only computer seller a second "bricks and mortar" outlet in New Zealand.
In a deal to be announced today JB Hi-Fi will, from next month, begin selling Dell's entry-level Inspiron range of home desktop and laptop PCs in its nine stores across Auckland, Hamilton and Wellington.
In August, Dell announced a similar agreement with the 70-store Dick Smith electronics chain.
The appearance of Dell PCs on local retailers' shelves is part of a global move that has seen the world's second largest computer maker ditch its traditional online-only approach as competition in the PC market has intensified.
Evan Williams, the Sydney-based general manager for Dell's Australia and New Zealand consumer division, said by growing its presence in bricks-and-mortar stores, Dell was taking advantage of changes in buying behaviour which was seeing more shoppers research their purchases online before going into a shop.
"There's a trend for a lot more people to research things online and combine that with an in-store experience. We've traditionally been the one online vendor in the market but we've evolved to have some retail presence," Williams said.
"What we're finding is that visits to our websites continue to increase and people are doing a lot of research online. We see our model as offering customers choice and that ability to do research. People can walk into a store pretty well informed by researching on the web."
Williams said the growing demand for laptops and their even smaller, more portable offspring - netbooks - meant consumers were finding it increasingly important to be able to touch and feel devices before they bought.
Being able to assess the size and weight of a portable computer was more important than it had been when desktops dominated the market.
"One of the key benefits now that we've got a retail footprint is customers can see the range of mobile devices that Dell has designed particularly for the consumer space," he said.
"On Dell.com it's been hard to get an understanding of how heavy [a device is and] what the actual design looks like.
"Having the full range of Inspirons in Dick Smith has helped the consumers understand the Dell proposition around design and enhanced mobility."
Williams said because Dell was close to announcing its latest quarterly financial result, he could not give details on how successful the move into local Dick Smith stores had been since the chain began stocking Dell's PCs five months ago. However, he said he was "very pleased with the results so far".
While Dick Smith and JB Hi-Fi were both stocking only Dell's cheapest offering, the Inspiron range, Williams said the company was open to making its more expensive consumer products - sold under the Studio, Alienware and Adamo labels - also available in New Zealand stores.
That could involve expanding the range of PCs available at Dick Smith and JB Hi-Fi stores or bringing in another retailer to sell them, he said.
"We'll explore partnerships in this space for those platforms. We'll continue to evaluate the market."
The opportunity to stock more PC brands is a double-edged sword for retailers who have been struggling with the tough economic environment and a cut-throat consumer electronics market.
On the one hand the availability of another brand provides the opportunity to offer shoppers more choice, on the other hand it increases the cost and complexity of doing business.
Last week Australian headquartered JB Hi-Fi announced it was closing its four remaining Hill and Stewart appliance stores in Auckland because they were "struggling for scale". Chief executive Richard Uechtritz was reported saying the company wanted to focus on growing its JB Hi-Fi brand which was "what we do best".
Uechtritz is holidaying overseas and could not be reached yesterday.
Also last week, audio equipment retailer Eastern Hi Fi Group called in the receivers, saying an inability to free itself from leases on unused premises meant it was unable to trade profitably.
OFF THE SHELF
From next month JB Hi-Fi will begin stocking a range of Dell Inspiron desktop and laptop PCs, following the lead of Dick Smith.
* Inspiron One - all-in-one desktop PC (online price: from $1349, depending on features)
* Inspiron 15 - 15.6-inch laptop running Intel's newly-released Core i3 and i5 processors (online price from $1299)
* Inspiron 11z - 11.6-inch light-weight laptop (online price from $999)
