Thursday afternoon, workers were busy sweeping the parking lot clean in preparation of Best Buy’s grand opening.

The 20,000 square-foot electronics retailer at 2074 Sycamore Road is preparing to open with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. today.

“We’re all set, ready to go,” Assistant Manager Dan Weaver said.

The store will hand out gift bags to the first 300 customers Sunday.

Inside, the store smelled of new stereo and television equipment, compact discs, DVDs and carpet.

Lacking are the larger appliances, such as refrigerators and washing machines.

They were left out of the store “just because of the size of them,” Weaver said.

Internet kiosks throughout the store will allow shoppers to order anything a larger Best Buy would offer, with same- or next-day delivery, Weaver said.

The store, about half the size of most Best Buys, is part of a new tactic for the chain based in Richfield, Minn.

“It’s smaller because we’re expanding into a market where we wouldn’t ordinarily have gone,” Weaver said.

The DeKalb store focuses more on electronics and entertainment media because of the large population of college students in the market, Weaver said.

Weaver called the merchandising and layout of the store “more efficient” and high-tech, including much of Best Buy’s normal offerings in less space.

The store, which signed its lease in July, is the latest addition to the Sycamore Road corridor.

“I was floored by the companies that are here now,” said Weaver, a 1998 NIU graduate.

“When I went to school, the big news was Super Wal-Mart opening up,” he said.

Now DeKalb shoppers can stop by a variety of book stores, discount stores and a host of other businesses.

Weaver, who has worked at Best Buy locations throughout the Chicago area, said he never has seen so much excitement over the opening of a Best Buy.

People have been asking constantly about the new store, Weaver said.

“It’s like you’re a rock star,” he said.

Jay Stech, a senior electrical engineering major, is looking forward to Friday’s opening.

“It’s nice to have something like this and not have to drive out of town,” Stech said.

DeKalb resident Trevor Faivre said he would rather leave town if he needed to shop at a Best Buy.

“It’s another store that DeKalb doesn’t need,” Faivre said. “All it’s going to do is bring a bunch of rich yuppies into town. I don’t think we need to turn into another St. Charles; we already have one.”

Best Buy will be open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.