Microsoft, which has not reopened any of its stores in the world since the start of containment, has decided to close them permanently. Microsoft was already considering this change of strategy before the health crisis; the company hoped to close its stores in 2021 to refocus on the web, but finally decided to take advantage of the temporary closings to precipitate this strategy.
According to Microsoft, since the closure of Microsoft Store stores in late March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the retail team has helped small businesses and customers in the education business transform digitally; trained virtually hundreds of thousands of business, government and education clients, distance workers and learning software; and assist customers through support calls. The team supported communities hosting more than 14,000 online workshops and summer camps and helped more than 3,000 schools and 1.5 million students celebrate virtual graduation ceremonies.
In a blog post, the company announced plans to permanently close all Microsoft Store sites in the United States and worldwide, with the exception of four sites that will be redesigned as experience centers that no longer sell products including London, New York City, Sidney and Redmond. The company has indicated that it will continue to co-locate engineering, sales, support, viewing centers, executive briefing centers and retail spaces for maximum impact for our customers and our business.
Members of the company’s retail sales team will continue to serve customers of Microsoft facilities and provide remote sales, training and support. Microsoft said it would continue to invest in its digital storefronts on Microsoft.com and its stores on Xbox and Windows, reaching more than 1.2 billion people every month in 190 markets.
Our hardware and software sales have continued to evolve online, as our Microsoft product portfolio has evolved into digital products, including Microsoft 365, games and entertainment. We have seen strong growth on Microsoft.com and our Xbox and Windows digital storefronts reaching up to 1.2 billion customers per month in 190 markets, said David Porter, vice president of Microsoft.
The Microsoft Store team has long been famous at Microsoft and embodies our culture, said Kathleen Hogan, director of human resources at Microsoft. The team has proven itself to attract, motivate and develop various talents. This infusion of talent is invaluable to Microsoft and creates opportunities for thousands of people.
No layoffs in the retail team
The company has indicated that no layoffs will result from the decision it made. Indeed, the editor indicated that its retail sales team has grown to serve all customers (consumers, small businesses, education sector and businesses): Our teams were built with diverse backgrounds and skills, speaking more in 120 languages and serving customers from anywhere. The evolution of our workforce has allowed us to continue to serve clients of all sizes when they needed us most, working remotely in recent months.
The team therefore seems ready to meet this challenge.
Microsoft would like to focus on the following approaches:
- His team members will continue to serve consumers, small businesses, the education sector and businesses, focusing on sales, training and support. They will work from Microsoft and remote offices. Microsoft says its commitment to grow and develop careers from this diverse talent pool is stronger than ever.
- Microsoft would like to make its digital storefronts the best place to learn, buy, and receive software and hardware support. Today, the publisher offers tools, including virtual customer support from trusted experts, online tutorials, virtual workshops with advice, and much more. Microsoft would like to continue investing in innovative digital solutions.
It’s a new day for the way the Microsoft Store team members will serve all customers, Porter said. We are excited about the opportunity to innovate in the way we engage with all customers, maximize our talents for maximum impact and, most importantly, help our valued customers do more.
And you ?
What do you think of this decision?
See as well :
NVIDIA GPUs are the first and only to integrate all Microsoft DirectX 12 functions and GPU acceleration, drivers are now availableMicrosoft announces general availability of Windows Defender ATP, its antivirus for Windows 10, for Linux servers and the launch of a public preview for AndroidMicrosoft releases a consumer version of Teams, which is already available for iOS and Android devicesMicrosoft closes Mixer, its video game streaming platform, joins Facebook Gaming, and terminates contracts with its partners
–
