Many years ago Kenwood expanded distribution into catalog showrooms which ticked off audio specialty stores who helped build the brand in the US. Kenwood's answer was to offer an "Audio Purist" line to independent dealers. Sounded like the right approach to us. We we unboxed the first integrated amplifier we noticed right away it lacked the bulk we were used to with classic Kenwood designs. Tone controls, etc. were removed -- only the essential elements remanded. But, sonically, it was a gutless wonder. It was finally time to pop off the case and take a lot inside. It was, literally, the same internals as the items made for the knobs-per-dollar retailers -- just "audiophiled up" to appeal to specialty stores. We said "good bye" to the line.
I retired in 2016 from the industry. I did observe that many integrated amplifiers from full-line manufacturers were just a shadow of their former selves with build quality and robustness (or, lack of it) very comparible with their AVR counterparts.
That being said, it's not a stretch to see how the Best Buy salesman reached his conclusions. Without "real" 2-channel gear on his radar, in HIS world, AVR's and integrated amps may be the same. "You don't know what you don't know" is a valuable asset for recruitment and training at Big Box retailers.