Print
Nokia’s market share in the US has been eroding continuously over the past few years. Now the phone maker has announced that their North American flagship stores will be closing in early 2010. The shops, which only opened a few years ago, are located in Chicago and New York.
Nokia says they intend to rely more on larger retail chains and carriers to sell phones. Nokia would disagree that the stores are being closed because of cost cutting. According to a Nokia statement, “The Flagship stores were originally conceived to inspire and educate consumers to the benefits of mobility through an innovative retail experience, and to broaden the appeal of the Nokia brand… consumer awareness in the U.S. has grown substantially.” So you see, it’s not that the stores were too costly, it’s that they had simply fulfilled their purpose. Right…
Many of Nokia’s handsets fail to ever make it to an American carrier. If they’re serious about their strategy to rely more on carriers, it might be a good idea to strike whatever deals they can to bring devices like the N900 to customers at a subsidized price. The world is bigger than the US, but Nokia can’t continue to ignore the bulk of US consumers that won’t ever buy an unsubsidized phone.
Comments are closed on this article
