Beats by Dr. Dre to open London store

Headphone and speaker brand Beats by Dr. Dre is set to open a retail store in London following its success in bringing the brand from the US to the UK.

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The company, which was started by rapper Dr. Dre and music producer and Interscope Geffen-A&M Records chairman Jimmy Iovine, is opening a pop-up store in Manhattan for the Christmas period and is looking to replicate the outlet in the Shoreditch area of London next year.

The move follows in the footsteps of electronics brands like Apple and Sony, where consumers can try out products in their own branded stores and get advice from assistants before they buy.

Entertainment retailer HMV is also trying to position itself as a technology outlet and is opening new “Fast Forward” tech store formats as it hopes to revive its business, which saw an 11% drop in year on year sales in 2010. HMV also recently trademarked the name “Headphones Hut”, but it is understood that this is not going to appear in stores.

Beats by Dr. Dre prides itself on producing audio technology that lets consumers listen to music “as the artist intended”. The company has collaborated with several pop stars, including Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber, to produce limited edition headphones and speakers.

Other electronics manufacturers including HTC and HP have also partnered with Beats by Dr. Dre to put its high performance speakers in their devices. HTC invested $300m for a 51% majority stake in Beats by Dr. Dre earlier this year as it looks to differentiate itself from other Android smartphone manufacturers.

The brand has built up a strong following in the UK, particularly amongst young people, despite the premium price for its products.

Omar Johnson, Beats by Dr. Dre’s US head of marketing, told T3 magazine: “We’re very excited about how much the UK has embraced Beats.”

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