These shops did not sell or support the products but were only aimed at providing the experience of the Samsung brand. In a bid to expand its presence in the United States and take on the arch-competitor, the Korean giant opened its first retail shops in the US. The three new Samsung retail shops, which are known as Samsung Experience Stores, were inaugurated on February 20. The launch coincided with “Galaxy UNPACKED” in San Francisco where the company revealed its first foldable phone, the Galaxy X and three versions of the new Galaxy S10 smartphone.
All three retail stores are located in major metropolitan areas - Roosevelt Field on Long Island in New York, The Americana at Brand in Los Angeles and The Galleria in Houston. Each shop will allow customers to browse and buy the latest Samsung products and devices including the smartphones, tablets, wearables, televisions and smart home devices. The shops will also act as "playground" for customers to get hands-on experience with new products, play video games at its "4K gaming lounge and interact with the company’s "4D Virtual Reality". The Samsung Experience Stores will also offer customer support and assistance including walk-in repair for Samsung devices.
The Samsung Experience Stores are vaguely reminiscent of Apple shops with a minimalistic, open floor space design, bright lighting, benches to sit on and large screens demonstrating products and software. The staff even wear blue t-shirts similar to Apple's staff.
The trio of Samsung Experience Stores is the first major push for the Korean company to expand its reach to its US customers. In 2012, the brand opened retail shops in the UK, but most of the shops are seeing low traffic. It remains to be seen if the US stores will witness low traffic like in the UK or give the brand the footing it needs to challenge the already established retail front, Apple. However, the company has a long catching-up to do considering its arch-rival has 272 retail stores in the US and 234 across 24 countries.
If the three shops prove a success, then we can expect to see more of these shops in the United States. Alongside the stores, the Korean firm plans to launch pop-up shops throughout the US this month.
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