• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, February 27, 2019

Best Buy startled industry observers with strong results for the fourth quarter of its fiscal year, with sales and profit gains that topped expectations.

The Minneapolis-based electronics retailer says those results came from stepped-up efforts to engage customers and improve the shopping experience. That includes its recently launched Total Tech Support program and expanded In-Home Advisor program.

Best Buy says comparable-store sales climbed 3%, while online sales jumped 9.3%. (Overall revenue declined 3% to $14.8 billion, primarily because of a calendar shift.) And net income more than doubled, rising to $735 million from $364 million.

For the year ahead, the company is forecasting revenue of between $42.9 billion to $43.9 billion, and comparable sales gains of between 0.5% to 2.5%

“Going forward, our priority in fiscal 2020 is to continue to transform the company by bringing to market solutions that solve real customer needs and by building customer relationships,” says Corie Barry, Best Buy’s CFO and strategic transformation officer, in its release.

The company’s results are especially impressive because there were relatively few blockbuster products wowing customers this holiday season — and the connected home devices market is maturing, writes Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail, in his comment on Best Buy.

“Despite the growing dominance of Amazon, we believe that Best Buy remains a very credible player in the market,” he adds. “Its customer service makes it a destination for those wanting to learn more about technology and devices — something that is particularly helpful in attracting older and less tech-savvy shoppers.” And its online offerings, including an efficient ‘buy online, collect from store’ option, appeals to younger tech enthusiasts.

“Best Buy has also been quick to pivot to new areas,” he says. “Stores have strong offerings of growth categories like wearables and smart home, which is helping to take the edge off the declines in more traditional segments like mobile devices.”