Review on E-tailing: Dell Incorporation Turns to Retail Stores

Dell Incorporation is a worldwide technology corporation which primarily develops, manufactures, sells, and supports personal computers and other computer-related products. The company has become the largest seller of PCs and servers since the company starts to grow during the 1980s and 1990s. The company is currently selling personal computers, servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, and computer peripherals around the world by using a direct-sales model via the Internet and the telephone-network

In 1996, Dell Incorporation began to sell computers to the public through its web site. It is the first company to sell computer online. However, Dell Incorporation opened the first full store, 3,000-square-foot (280 m2) NorthPark Center in Dallas, Texas in 2006. This is because the management of Dell Incorporation attempts to expand the company businesses and cultivate a closer relationship the consumers.

But, the main reason is that Dell Incorporation is confronting with the critical competitions from Apple, Hewlett-Packard (HP), Sun Microsystems, Gateway, Lenovo, Sony, Acer, Toshiba and Asus. So, Dell Incorporation attempts to strengthen their brick-and-mortar presence worldwide with especially in US and Europe. In the year end of 2007, Dell opened its first retail store in Malaysia and it is located at the Mid Valley Megamall's IT World section.

Inside the retail store, there will be various types of products to display and the consumers need not go online to browse or order for the Dell products. This will give the consumers a chance to touch the products on their own and need not wait for few months to receive the products which are ordered via the company’s web site.

Although selling online is a competitive advantage for a company’s business, customers today still prefer to have physical existence of the products when selecting or in the process of purchasing. This is because some of them would like to take a look at the product they need before deciding to buy the product or choose for alternatives. Therefore, in order to be successful in the virtual market space as well as expanding business in the traditional selling world, companies should be able to manage both sides of the markets cost-effectively and efficiently so that they can enjoy more benefits from both methods. However, if the retail stores are not carefully managed, the companies might lose their loyal customers as well.