EE Pours £6M into Upgraded Experience Stores with Smart Home & Gaming Zones

EE, the UK mobile operator, has committed £6 million over the next year to enhance its retail presence with upgraded "Experience" stores. The investment will fund more than ten new physical shops designed to showcase EE's latest connectivity, smart home, and gaming products while offering immersive customer interactions.

The first of these refreshed locations is opening today at the Metrocentre in Gateshead; this is the first of "more than ten" experience stores EE plans to launch. These new stores build on an earlier redesign at the Westfield London White City branch, which added gaming zones and interactive digital displays, and have seen over 250% footfall compared to the older EE store previously in that location. Other upgraded locations already benefitting include shops in Kent, Cardiff, and Manchester, where footfall lifts of about 35% have been recorded following similar enhancements.

The upgraded "Experience" stores are more than just retail outlets. They contain dedicated zones where customers can test the latest smart home tech and gaming gear, experience product demonstrations, and try out devices before purchase. In Gateshead, the new store is located in Metrocentre's Platinum Mall, neighbouring major retailers and positioned to be a tech destination in itself. Asif Aziz OBE, Retail Director at EE, remarked:

"We are committed to elevating the retail experience … through a multi-million-pound investment that will transform our stores over the next year."

According to EE, this strategy is part of its ambition to become more than just a connectivity provider. The immersive retail format is aimed at building stronger customer relationships, giving physical touchpoints for product discovery, and reinforcing EE's brand presence in a digital age.

For EE, the bet is that enhanced physical retail stores with "experiential" offerings—gaming, smart homes, tech demos—can drive footfall, increase in-store sales, improve customer satisfaction, and serve as showcases for its broader service range beyond just mobile contracts. Over the rollout period, these stores could become key differentiators in a competitive telecom retail sector.