Tweeter to Focus Retail Efforts on High-End Market

Tweeter, the Boston-based electronics retailer that has recently announced lower revenue and employee layoffs, has decided to focus on the high-end segment of the HDTV market after determining that it simply cannot compete with the likes of Best Buy and Circuit City on price. More from the Eagle-Tribune.

This is a smart, if overdue, move by Joe McGuire, Tweeter's CEO. The only retailers who can legitimately compete on price with the big box guys like BB and Circuit are other big boxes like Wal-Mart and Home Depot. A niche 154-store outfit like Tweeter cannot effectively serve the low-end and the high-end customer and has seen its profit margins plunge trying. In fact, I've read reports that some retailers aren't even really making any money selling HDTVs anymore; it's the accessories and installation services that are now fattening their wallets. That being the case, this move from Tweeter makes all the more sense.