Another source over at 9to5mac.com sent in a similar story. The source claimed “to be an employee at ‘a fairly large’ Best Buy in the Southeast” reiterated CrunchGear’s claim that Best Buy has been holding back iPad 2s, but didn’t say anything about it being because a particular store had hit a daily sales quota—just that store managers were told not to sell iPad 2s and employees were instructed to tell customers they were out of stock.
No explanation, in other words.
BGR.com also claims to have been forwarded a text message that was apparently sent out “to all retail employees at a California Best Buy location” by “Best Buy management,” saying the following:
“NewsFlash: ipads cannot be sold according to BBY. All ipads except for preorders MUST be held until further notice. Cant tell customers were holding them either.”
You’re missing two apostrophes! But I digress…
Again, there was no explanation given as to why stores were supposed to hold back iPad 2 stock. However, Best Buy finally sent a statement directly to BGR.com saying the following:
“Best Buy continues to receive iPad 2 inventory from Apple on a regular basis. As we’ve said previously, we are fulfilling customer reservations first. Our stores have been asked to temporarily hold non-reserved iPad 2 inventory for an upcoming promotion. This is a customary practice for us when there are supply constraints. Best Buy enjoys a great partnership with Apple, and we’re delighted by customer response to iPad 2.”
No official word, notes BGR.com, about whether or not employees are “being instructed to misinform customers” about iPad 2 stock levels.
But if you think a Best Buy employee is going to tell you, “Yes, we have plenty in the back but I can’t sell you one because we’re saving them for an upcoming promotion,” instead of, “Sorry, we’re out of stock,” you’re grossly underestimating how badly salespeople and customer service reps want to avoid dealing with irate customers.
More on TIME.com:
Acer’s 10-inch Android Tablet Undercuts iPad at $450
Must Be Nice: Kindergarteners in Maine Getting Free iPads Now