Very Rare BEST BUY Working Proof

Product Details

Company
Best Buy Co., Inc.

Certificate Type
Working Proof of the company's Common Stock

Time Period
1980's

Printer
American Bank Note Company

Format & Approximate Size
This proof is adhered to a thick 12" x 8 1/2" piece of cardboard. The proof is protected by a "flip up" clear protective and editing layer and is adhered to the folder itself.

Images
You will receive the exact proof pictured as it is the only one of it's kind. The first picture shows the proof with the edit layer lying atop the piece. The second picture shows just the proof with the plastic layer lifted out of view. The third picture shows the back of the cardboard with various notations and approvals.

Guaranteed Authentic
Yes

Additional Details
Fascinating piece of financial history from this retail tech giant!

On August 22, 1966, Richard M. Schulze and a business partner opened Sound of Music, an electronics store specializing in high fidelity stereos in St. Paul, Minnesota. Schulze financed the opening of his first store with his personal savings and a second mortgage he took out on his family's home. In 1967, Sound of Music acquired Kencraft Hi-Fi Company and Bergo Company. Sound of Music earned $1 million in revenue and made about $58,000 in profits in its first year. In 1969, Sound of Music had three stores and Schulze bought out his business partner.

Sound of Music operated nine stores throughout Minnesota by 1978. In 1981, the Roseville location, at the time the largest and most profitable Sound of Music store, was hit by a tornado. The store's roof was sheared off and showroom destroyed, but the storeroom was left intact. In response, Schulze decided to have a "Tornado Sale" of damaged and excess stock in the damaged store's parking lot. He poured the remainder of his marketing budget into advertising the sale, promising "best buys" on everything. Sound of Music made more money during the four-day sale than it did in a typical month.

In 1983, with seven stores and $10 million in annual sales, Sound of Music was renamed Best Buy Company, Inc.