Microsoft Corp. on Friday announced a strategic change in its retail operations, including closing Microsoft Store physical locations.
The company said in a statement that Microsoft’s retail team members “will continue to serve customers from Microsoft corporate facilities and remotely providing sales, training, and support.”
It will continue to invest in its digital storefronts on Microsoft.com, and stores in Xbox and Windows, reaching more than 1.2 billion people every month in 190 markets, according to the company.
Microsoft Corporate Vice President David Porter said the company’s sales have grown online as their product portfolio has evolved to largely digital offerings, adding that their team has proven success serving customers beyond any physical location.
Since the Microsoft Store locations closed in late March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the retail team has helped small businesses and education customers digitally transform, virtually trained hundreds of thousands of enterprise and education customers on remote work and learning software, and helped customers with support calls, said the statement.
The company said the closing of Microsoft Store physical locations is expected to cost 450 million U.S. dollars, but it has no plans to cut jobs.
