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A Eulogy for RadioShack

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Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#31

Post by mrbill »

Some of the locations have started to carry a bigger electronics component selection again (instead of a single pull-out file of resistors and capcitors), along with 3D printing supplies, Arduinos and related parts (retail packed from SparkFun), and so forth.

Unfortunately, they started doing so 4-5 years too late. I was shocked in 2007-2008 when I needed a couple of resistors to finish a project, the local Nerd Palace (Electronic Parts Outlet, in Houston) was closed on a Sunday, and the local Radio Shack actually had that pull-out file of components with what I needed.

Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#33

Post by technomancy »

chrischen wrote: post #26
jmspring wrote: post #11

Radio Shack at this point is a sad caricature of itself. I remember being able to buy all sorts of ICs, analog parts, interesting radios and kits. Now it peddles cell phones and overly prices things -- I recall needing a battery for my cordless phone recently, they wanted $23 for a battery for a $50 phone? Uh, no. Two other bay area places that have changed a lot are Frys and the now closed Quement Electronics. Fry's…

> I remember being able to buy all sorts of ICs, analog parts, interesting radios and kits. They still do. Most radioshacks I've visited carry arduino kits and ICs, electronic parts, LEDs, resistors, capacitors, etc.

IME it depends on whether they're inside a mall or not. The ones inside malls tend to just be glorified mobile phone sales depots, but you can actually get components at the standalone ones.

Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#34

Post by ek750 »

VLM wrote: post #19
marincounty wrote: post #6

I think Radio Shack could be reborn if it did a few things. Get rid of the cheap toys. Go back to just electronic parts, and today's technology--like having the Ardino and Rasberry always in stock--along with all the less know electronic kits. Try to keep the prices down. Keep all radios and cell phone stuff, but get rid of the advertisements(I don't like to walk into loud stores). I would also devote a small section…

Let me demonstrate the problem to you, I have two tabs open on my browser Radioshack.com 10 foot HDMI cable $29.99 "marked down" to $15.99 plus sales tax amazon.com 3 meter HDMI cable $7.49 plus... plus nothing, free prime shipping So I can order from amazon right now and have it in two days, or wait days/hours until I have time to visit a legacy brick and mortar and pay twice as much. So without even looking at the…

> Maybe building rents have exploded?

I think this is plausible as a contributing (but by no means primary) factor.

I owned a few stores in malls in the 2k's and before the Great Recession hit, the publicly traded mall management companies didn't realize how overbuilt and over-priced their spaces were and charged accordingly. Absolutely insane per-square foot rents + gross profit % of rent. It was absolutely impossible to make a profit based on their 10 year lease rates that didn't account for changing consumer behaviors.

I suspect that most Radio Shack locations saw a drop in foot traffic and combined with a mismatch in demographics with their offerings caused a shift to high-pressure sales tactics and less technical products. So sad. I loved the TRS-80.

These factors as well as others, probably pushed RS corporate to local optima that ensured their final demise.

Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#35

Post by thenmar »

jmelloy wrote: post #14
plg wrote: post #4

I remember flipping through the Radio Shack catalogue as a kid in the late 70s, early 80s, and making my virtual xmas shopping list (I almost never got the things I actually wanted). radio-controlled cars, walkie-talkies, metal detectors, tape recorders, electronics kits. I also remember being able to walk into a Radio Shack in my local mall and stroll over to the electronics section and pick out just the right resis…

Two Christmases in a row, I got a radio-controlled car from Radio Shack. Two years in a row, that car was dead by New Year's. I never asked for one again.

Were you recharging them?

Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#36

Post by vibrolax »

Radio Shack had a lot in common with Sears, now also on death's doorstep. Sometimes the contract manufacturers making RS's house brand speakers or Sears "Craftsman" power tools or "Kenmore" appliances would turn out a top-performing product for a great price. As the actual manufacturer might change from year-to-year, one could never rely on the brand to deliver a good value. One had to read magazine or other reviews to discover where the diamonds were hidden.

Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#37

Post by cicero »

adricnet wrote: post #2

That's certainly an interesting read... and one I can't really argue with the anecdata of from my own experiences. So I'll add one: After it was too late by that author's reckoning, the parent of Radio Shack tried another venture, a "big box" store called The Incredible Universe. When that failed and they wrote it off, it wiped out the entire profit of Radio Shack thousands of stores for that financial year. I still…

The Fry's in Dallas is in the space of a former Incredible Universe. The Fry's is decorated like a cattle ranch, but Incredible Universe was like a rock concert. The first time I went in there, I immediately thought they were trying too hard to be cool. It was completely over the top, so I'm not surprised they wiped out all of their profits. It's too bad they couldn't find a happy medium.

Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#38

Post by breadbox »

SomeCallMeTim wrote: post #9
breadbox wrote: post #7

It's awful to read that and compare it with what Radio Shack was for us geeklings in the 1980s. For those of us living far from big cities, Radio Shack was the source of electric parts, IC chips, LEDs, not to mention hands-on access to actual computers.

Exactly. It makes me sad that the only remaining source of electronic parts in many areas is likely to close down. Even with other options nearby, Radio Shack is still the closest place to me that sells such parts -- and the only one that's open past 5pm, or on Sundays. I wonder if there's a way for them to double-down on the geek side of their inventory. They're at least picking up a lot of "maker" inventory: Arduin…

Exactly! With the current maker movement you'd think they would be primed to reinvent themselves.

After reading that article, however, I'm inclined to think that their problems are not so much from a market that changed out from under them, but rather are internal and self-inflicted. If so, then they completely deserve their current situation.

Re: A Eulogy for RadioShack

#40

Post by toomuchtodo »

morganvachon wrote: post #25

I'd be willing to bet that this is exactly the way it was at most, if not all, corporate RadioShack stores. On the other hand, the franchise stores (which mostly no longer exist) could be great places to shop and to work, because they were owned by actual breathing human beings, not faceless corporate overlords. My first "real" job after high school was at the local RadioShack, which was owned by one of the most amaz…

> It really saddens me to know that he'll likely have to drop the RadioShack name one day soon

Could he turn his shop into a for-profit hackerspace that has inventory for projects?

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