Future Shop
 |
|
| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Fate | Merged with Best Buy |
| Founded | 1982 |
| Founder | Hassan Khosrowshahi |
| Defunct | March 28, 2015 |
| Headquarters | Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada |
|
Key people
|
Ron Wilson - President and Chief Operating Officer |
| Products | Electronics |
| Parent |
Best Buy Canada (2001–2015) |
| Website | www |
Ron Wilson - President and Chief Operating Officer
Annalisa King - Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Future Shop was a Canadian electronics store chain. It was established in 1982 by Hassan Khosrowshahi. By 1990, the chain had become the country's largest retailer of computer and consumer electronics. In January 2013, the company operated 139 locations across Canada.
In November 2001, Future Shop was acquired by the similar American chain Best Buy for $580 million. Although Best Buy began to establish Canadian locations under its own name following the purchase, it continued to operate the Future Shop stores as a separate chain (which were differentiated primarily by their in-store experiences), even though many of the new locations were in close proximity to existing Future Shop stores.
On March 28, 2015, Best Buy announced the dissolution of the Future Shop brand and the closure of 66 of its locations. The remaining stores now operate under the Best Buy branding.
Future Shop was founded in 1982 by Iranian entrepreneur Hassan Khosrowshahi, who left Iran to settle in Vancouver, British Columbia to start a retail business. Khosrowshahi graduated from the University of Tehran with a degree in law and economics and was a part of the family who owned the Minoo Industrial Group, a large Iran manufacturer of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and food products. Khosrowshahi planned to open a chain of consumer and home electronics stores and take over the Canadian retail market. His associate, Ardeshir Ziabakhsh (Ardy Zia), took the role of president and CEO of the newly formed company and Khosrowshahi served as chairman and founder. In 1983, Future Shop opened the first three stores, all of which were in British Columbia. The company sold computers, software, games, videocassettes, audio equipment, music, and other items. By December 1983, the first month all of the Future Shop stores were opened and making business, the company reached $2.8 million in sales.
By 1990, Future Shop became the largest retailer of computers and consumer electronics in Canada and was operating 38 stores across the country and parts of the United States. In August 1993, Future Shop went public on the , making $30 million to be used for expansion and to pay off debt.
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Wikipedia