“When Minneapolis-based Best Buy Co. Inc. planned to enter the Canadian market a few years ago, rumour had it the firm would school B.C.-based Future Shop Ltd. in the ways of electronic retailing. But it seems Future Shop is the teacher these days, giving Best Buy a lesson in cost-effective computing.

Best Buy acquired Future Shop in 2001. According to Roy Brassington, team leader, store systems at Best Buy Canada Ltd., it took some time for the firm to recognize how superior Future Shop’s computer infrastructure was beside its own….

…the server-centric infrastructure works for Best Buy Canada, especially when the retailer compares the costs of running its thin-client-enabled stores with the cost of its PC-enabled locations. Some of the retail outlets, about 20 per cent of them, still use PCs. But those few old-school locations cost more to manage than the entire fleet of thin-client and server-supported spots, Brassington said.”