GameStop‘s new, larger Silicon Valley store is being dubbed the retail giant’s “store of the future.” VentureBeat reports the new stores will meld the worlds of retail and online shopping, by offering “points” to customers who purchase DLC (like the Modern Warfare 2 map pack) from a kiosk in the store. It’s all part of the loyalty card program that the company is slowly rolling out across the country.
The retailer’s recent purchase of online portal Kongregate is also expected to deliver 10 million unique visitors a month to GameStop’s site. The company, which recently missed its earnings target, also plans to invest $100 million a year in expanding its online business.
To use GameStop’s online kiosk, customers show their “PowerUp Rewards Pro card” to a scanner and it’ll display their purchase history. They can then add games to their wishlist by scanning games off the shelves. To purchase downloadable content for Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3, users find a specific game in the system, pick the DLC they want, swipe their credit card and out pops a code to redeem at home.
Why would customers take the extra step when the product costs the same at home? Well, because in the store they’ll earn rewards and achievements for purchases. It’s certainly one way to keep GameStop brick-and-mortar relevant in the upcoming digital distribution age.
GameStop reveals its ‘Store of the Future,’ pre-order it now for $5 originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 24 Aug 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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