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SpaceX appears to be working on its own physical Starlink stores to try and drive more users to the satellite internet service.
Last week, the company quietly published a job posting for a Starlink Store Manager in Bakersfield, California. "As a Starlink Store Manager, you will be responsible for overseeing day-to-day store operations, managing a team of five or more employees, and ensuring customers have a seamless and informative experience," the posting says.
(Credit: SpaceX)It also notes that the store manager must be “adept at launching and operating retail locations,” suggesting SpaceX is planning a whole line of Starlink shops. The company is aiming to hire someone with over “4+ years of experience in retail management.”
The job posting is surprising since Starlink already has a substantial presence at major retailers in the US, including at Best Buy, Home Depot, and Walmart. This includes selling Starlink dishes at some physical Best Buy and Walmart locations.
In addition, SpaceX has been selling Starlink directly to US consumers through Starlink.com since the satellite internet system launched as a beta in 2020. The approach has certainly been successful, as Starlink has grown to over 2 million active customers in the US, up from just 10,000 in early 2021.
Still, the job posting suggests SpaceX plans to do more to reach potential customers. A dedicated Starlink store would certainly be a novelty while enabling company staff to answer questions directly from consumers. Bakersfield, California, is home to over 417,000 people and is located about 120 miles north of SpaceX’s major facility in Hawthorne, California.
The job posting is also raising speculation that a physical Starlink store could be tied to SpaceX’s ambitions in the mobile carrier market. The company offers a cellular Starlink service through T-Mobile, delivering connectivity to supported phones in cellular dead zones. But last month, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk also entertained the idea of competing with traditional mobile carriers after his company bought $17 billion in valuable radio spectrum from EchoStar.
SpaceX didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.