Best Buy, the US consumer electronics shop, is planning to roll out more than 200 stores nationwide, according to a report by the Financial Times, after coughing up £1.1 billion for a 50 percent stake in Carphone Warehouse last May.

　　British consumers can expect to see Best Buy's yellow price tag adorning shopfronts from 2009 onward, followed by an expansion into other European markets. The retailer is avoiding strong competition in Germany and France and instead targeting countries with fewer rivals. Apparently five stores will open at the launch next year, which will no doubt place increased pressure on competitors Currys and PC World.

　　Carphone Warehouse plans to announce more details on its plans including "broad store format" during an October trading update. It is currently unknown if it will sell white goods in addition to regular consumer electronics. According to FT.com, "people familiar with the plans said a typical Best Buy store in the UK would be 30,000 sq. ft with an annualised rent of about £1.5m, requiring £1.5m of working capital and about £2.5m of capital expenditure."

　　Economic conditions have resulted in a 45 percent drop in Carphone's share price this year, to the point of being "in danger of falling out of the FTSE 100 only a year after being promoted," says the FT.com article.