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| El Paso-owned and proud |
Sep. 5 - Sep. 11
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Cherry Fusion signs national deal with Blockbuster
By Robert Gray |
After completing an eight-month pilot program, Cherry Fusion, an El Paso electronics repair company, has positioned itself to be part of the revival plan of one of the nation’s top movie rental companies.
“It’s exciting,” said Mike Roth, the company’s business development manager. “We’re a local company – we are going to stay local – and we’re taking this national.”
Cherry Fusion recently obtained Blockbuster’s backing to offer its service to Blockbuster franchisees nationwide, after its successful pilot program here in El Paso.
“In the last six to eight months, not only have we grown,” Roth said, “but we’ve identified areas where we can offer more services.”
The company has designed a kiosk that allows consumers to easily get their electronics repaired – MP3 players, gaming consoles, laptops and smart phones – from any Blockbuster location outfitted with the technology.
Since placing kiosks in two local Blockbuster locations six months ago – George Dieter on the Eastside and Resler on the West – Roth said the company has tripled its business.
And they doubled the size of their repair facility, growing to 4,500-square-feet Roth said, to accommodate the increased volume and provide workspace for two new technicians.
That new business for Cherry Fusion also means more reason for customers to visit his stores, said Alan Payne, the owner of 41 Blockbuster locations including 12 in El Paso. His two stores with Cherry Fusion kiosks have seen increases in traffic.
“I think the test has been a success so far and that both Cherry Fusion and we are going to try to drive it as far as we can,” he said. “There are not very many places you can go to get small electronics repaired.”
As the movie rental market splinters and Blockbuster faces increased competition from companies like Redbox, Netflix and Apple’s iTunes, Blockbuster CEO Jim Keyes said at the company’s annual shareholder meeting Thursday that the chain is branching out into new territory and working on ways to drive traffic to its stores.
Shares of Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI) have fallen almost 80 percent since the beginning of 2008. It closed Friday at $1.03.
The goal, Keyes said, is to transform the company from a video rental company “to a multi-channel provider of convenient access to entertainment.”
That includes more movie merchandising. Expect to see replicas of the sunglasses Tom Cruise wore in “Top Gun” on Blockbuster shelves. And look for self-service beverage bars in some stores, gaming equipment sold on consignment, gaming competitions, and, Roth hopes, Cherry Fusion’s self-service repair kiosks.
“Really, the fun and neat thing about this is that we’re part of this,” Roth said. “We get to help Blockbuster evolve into something new.”
Cherry Fusion plans to offer new services like data recovery for computers and MP3 players, and game console customization. The company will also sell refurbished gaming equipment.
Hector Leon, Cherry Fusion’s president, said he came up with the idea when his own iPod broke two years ago. Then he was head of Cherry Fusion’s parent company, Innovei International, an electronic and electro-mechanical repair company in Juarez.
He took the iPod to one of his technicians thinking, “They’ve got to be able to repair this,” he said. The only thing wrong was the battery and his iPod was fixed for about $20, saving him the cost of a new iPod. He decided he wanted to give other consumers the opportunity to save money, too.
Cherry Fusion will install its kiosks in five Dallas stores next month. Roth said they chose Dallas because it’s Blockbuster’s headquarters.
They’re also working to identify additional markets for expansion, probably cities like Austin or Albuquerque.
Roth said their plan is to have kiosks in 800 stores by the end of the year.
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| READER RESPONSES |
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aaron - posted: 6/2/2010 11:09:32 PM
when will this new store open up here in el paso tx we could use a new electronics chain against best by as well as compusa i would assume that u would put it up on las palmas marketplace near
tinseltown usa | | | Lawrence May - posted: 8/24/2009 6:54:04 PM
Add to your web site the store locations and telephone numbers of Cherry Fusion kiosks located in markets outside of El Paso. Called several Blockbusters in Dallas trying to locate a Cherry Fusion kiosk and the store personnel had no knowledge of Cherry Fusion repairs. Person at your "915-225-5277" number was able to provide needed info reference Dallas after a search.
"This is a much needed repair service. Please keep repairs cost effective." | | | james emanuel - posted: 7/21/2009 5:22:15 PM
Had a very bad experience withthis company. They took forever to fix my laptop and when they did, it wouldn't work properly. The refused to honor their waranty and i had to take it somewhere else. | | | jose gonzalez - posted: 7/2/2009 9:02:47 PM
I had the worst experience with this company. They kept my device for 3 months, then told me they couldn't fix it after they provided me with an estimate. When they gave me my smart phone back, it fell apart. keep away from thsi company! | | | Jose Gonzalez - posted: 6/18/2009 2:25:53 PM
DO NOT SEND YOUR DEVICES TO THIS COMPANY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have had many problems with this company and have heard many horror stories of customers taking their devices for repair and Cherry Fusion taking months to fix it. They also use cheap Chinese knock off parts, not originals. They have the worst Customer Service, it could take days to get ahold of someone. Your better off sending your devices to RapidRepair.com | | | Sue - posted: 6/8/2009 4:14:24 PM
This is a phenomenal opportunity to put a home grown company on the map! Wishing Cherry Fusion and Blockbuster a long and prosperous working relationship! | | |
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