Samsung mini-stores propel Best Buy stock

Shares of Best Buy jumped 16 percent Thursday after Samsung, the big consumer electronics manufacturer, said it will open mini-stores in more than 1,400 of the retailer's locations.

By early next month, 900 so-called Samsung Experience Shops will be open in Best Buy stores. More will debut by early summer.

The shops will feature a broad range of Samsung smartphones, tablet computer, laptops, cameras and other devices. Samsung, stung by Apple lawsuits accusing the company of copying products, is trying to prove to consumers it can innovate as effectively as Apple.

The Samsung shops will vary in size, with the largest being about 460 square feet. Best Buy already has 740 stores with sections dedicated to Apple products. Those spaces average about 200 square feet.

Best Buy would not discuss financial or other terms of its arrangement with Samsung. Best Buy stock is up about 100 percent so far this year, as Wall Street has become much more optimistic about the company's prospects.

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