With workers being forced to work from home due to coronavirus, Best Buy (BBY -0.81%) has seen a spike in sales, according to the Star Tribune.
The sales increase has been driven by people buying monitors, keyboards, laptops, webcams, and other items needed to work out of your house comfortably. Best Buy has also seen a big jump in sales for freezers and refrigerators as people look to stock food for what could be a long period of social distancing.
Changed times help Best Buy
Efforts to limit the spread of coronavirus have forced companies that can get work done remotely to require employees to work from home. In many cases, workers may need to add technology items to work from home comfortably. A second monitor, for example, is a luxury for someone who works from home occasionally, but becomes a needed productivity tool if you work at home for an extended period.
"We are seeing a surge in demand across the country for products that allow people to work or learn from home, as well as those products that allow people to refrigerate or freeze food," Best Buy spokesperson Carly Charlson said in a statement. "Our teams are working hard to meet this demand while keeping their safety top of mind."
A surprising retail winner (for now)
Grocery chains and warehouse clubs have so far been the big winners of the current downturn. Best Buy is an unexpected winner, because its merchandise isn't quite as essential. What has yet to be seen is whether this run on technology will continue or burn out as demand gets filled (since monitors don't get used up the way groceries do).
