Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly held a meeting with LG electronics executives late last week to discuss expanding sales channels for LG handsets and its new consumer electronics lineups for the next year in the U.S., sources said on Friday.
LG Electronics’ head of Home Entertainment Kwon Hee-won and other top officials were among the participants.
“The meeting was about the products that will be introduced in the U.S. market next year,” the sources said.
Increasing the sales channels for LG’s latest handsets and phablets at Best Buy’s shops across markets may also have been discussed, one market watcher said.
“LG probably wants as many sales channels as they can right now because its latest lineup has been completed, along with the curved smartphone that’s going to be released next month,” said one source, declining to be identified.
The latest development is in line with the announcement of the Seoul-based tech giant Thursday that LG’s flagship slate G Pad 8.3, released Monday in Korea, will be sold at Best Buy’s shops across the U.S.
Top Samsung officials, including appliance chief Yoon Boo-keun and mobile chief Shin Jong-kyun, also met executives from the U.S. retailer last Thursday.
“Meetings with retailers like Best Buy are held on a regular basis, especially at this time of the year,” said one industry watcher, adding that Joly’s visit in Seoul marks the ever-growing global presence of Korean electronics makers.
LG Electronics spokespeople declined to comment on the Best Buy conference, saying they were unauthorized to discuss the itinerary of business partners or the content of the meetings.
