Best Buy UK names entertainment chief

Rob Wilkins has been appointed the head of home theatre and entertainment at Best Buy UK.

He takes the role following the departure of former entertainment boss Marc Spence. The former GAME and HMV exec left the retailer in August to move to the Middle East.

Wilkins had previously worked at LG Electronics, latterly as general manager for Home Entertainment in the national accounts division. He joined Best Buy in 2009.

At Best Buy, Wilkins has been charged with making sure the firm has the ‘very best propositions available to customers online and in-store.’

His appointment follows a number of high-profile departures at Best Buy UK.

Last week the retailer’s chief executive Scott Wheway stepped down to be replaced by Carphone Warehouse veteran Andrew Harrison. This was followed by the departures of marketing director Kevin Styles and commercial director Harry Parmar.

But Wilkins says the company is still on track to have eight stores established across the UK by the end of April and believes Best Buy has already made a big impact on the nation’s technology retail landscape.

Our plan has always been to open around eight stores in our first year and we’re still on track to achieve this,” he told MCV.

We have a further five stores planned for 2011 and we will announce additional locations in due course.

There has been latent demand in the tech market in recent years, which can be largely attributed to a lack of investment in the category, both in terms of people and experience.

With our arrival in the UK, we believe we are injecting some much needed excitement back into the category.”