RadioShack Is Preparing to File For Bankruptcy Again (bloomberg.com)

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RadioShack Is Preparing to File For Bankruptcy Again (bloomberg.com)

Posted by BeauHD on Tuesday March 7, 2017 @10:00AM from the here-we-go-again dept.

BarbaraHudson writes: Bloomberg is reporting that the "new" RadioShack is preparing to file for bankruptcy. From the report: "General Wireless Operations, the RadioShack successor created by a partnership between Sprint Corp. and the defunct retailer's owners, is preparing to file for bankruptcy, according to people familiar with the matter. A filing could happen within the coming days and will probably result in liquidation, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the process isn't public. The beleaguered company, which does business as RadioShack, operates outlets that share space with Sprint's retail locations, as well as franchising the name to other stores." Investors had thrown $75 million in lines of credit and term loans at the business, which was used for "renovated locations and updated inventory." That's less than $60,000 per store -- chickenfeed in today's world, where renovating a McDonalds can run between $500,000 and $2,000,000, and you're not trying to pivot.

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Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:02 · Score: 1

More than any other retail chain, Radio Shack was rendered obsolete and uncompetitive by the internet. It's kind of sad, because when I was a kid I used to like to go there.
1. Re:Killed by the internet... by darkain · 2017-03-07 10:38 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  More than any other? Perhaps you forget video rental stores. An entire industry is gone. RadioShack sticking around this long is actually quite noteworthy!
2. Re:Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:48 · Score: 0
  
  No it wasn't. Brands like MicroCenter are doing just fine.
  RadioShack killed itself when they said "fuck you" to the people that went there for small parts like capacitors and resistors, and started fixating on phones and phone cases for a quick buck. Had RadioShack stayed a Do-it-yourself hobby store, they would have flourished.
3. Re:Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:49 · Score: 0
  
  More than any other? Perhaps you forget video rental stores. An entire industry is gone. RadioShack sticking around this long is actually quite noteworthy!
  Video stores aren't dead yet! Family Video is still around (and opening more stores last time I checked)
4. Re:Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:49 · Score: 0
  
  More than any other retail chain, Radio Shack was rendered obsolete and uncompetitive by the internet. It's kind of sad, because when I was a kid I used to like to go there.
  The emergence of the Internet is certainly part of the problem, but it goes much farther than that.
  When I think back on all the things I bought at Radio Shack over the years, they are all things that are no longer used by the vast majority of people today. Stereo components (receiver, tape deck, turntable, etc) and all the various cables required to connect them, VCRs, their TRS-80 line of computers, etc.
  Radio Shack is sort of like the Yahoo of retail. A company that just has no reason to exist any more.
5. Re:Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:59 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  More than any other? Perhaps you forget video rental stores. An entire industry is gone. RadioShack sticking around this long is actually quite noteworthy!
  People tend to think that the video rental business disappeared just because Blockbuster is gone. But their demise was mostly due to bad business decisions. There's a video rental store a short distance for my house, and judging by their parking lot, I would say they are still doing quite well.
  Blockbuster was bought by Viacom. A few years later Viacom decided that they didn't want Blockbuster anymore so it was spun off as a separate company, a process that left it deeply in debt. Blockbuster was always profitable but couldn't generate enough money to pay down the debt so they filed for bankruptcy. The same thing happened to the Borders book stores (bought by K-Mart and then dumped). Massive debt cause by bad management has killed far more businesses than the Internet.
6. Re:Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:08 · Score: 0
  
  Well... not JUST because Blockbuster is gone.
7. Re:Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:16 · Score: 1
  
  Not at all! Internet orders take a minimum of DAYS. There was a solid space RS occupied that is largely unfilled in the market today, except maybe Fry's or similar.
  What really killed RS wasn't just competition, it was failed ventures to try to emulate their competition.
8. Re:Killed by the internet... by MightyMartian · 2017-03-07 11:29 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  I think RadioShack's problems predate turning themselves into a cell phone store. In the 1980s RadioShack was, at least in my town, the center of the community's technical world. The manager was a great guy who would lead teenagers like myself muck around with the latest Model 100 or Model 4, and indeed my first three computers were all Tandy/RadioShack computers. RadioShack was sort of a geek cultural center back in the day, but by the 90s it was trying to transform itself and I remember the stores became a lot more "corporate", with management that was far less friendly. Yes, the slow degradation of the components section of the store had its effect in reducing the hobbyist traffic, but it was also that the soul of the place seemed to die out. Where in the 80s and early 90s you actually had staff who knew something about the products they were selling, by the early 00s, you had kids who could barely read a script.
  
  --
  The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
9. Re: Killed by the internet... by dougdonovan · 2017-03-07 11:30 · Score: 1
  
  i ordered my first clock radio from the shack back in the day.
10. Re:Killed by the internet... by MightyMartian · 2017-03-07 11:32 · Score: 1
  
  It's kind of a pity in a way. I remember back in the day that I could literally order anything in their catalog, which was huge. I remember ordering a new keyboard for my Color Computer 1, which hadn't been manufactured in a few years by that point. It seems so odd to me that the companies that already had such an advanced warehouse and shipping network couldn't find a way to get that into the Internet age, but they just floundered, and ended their time selling crappy PC clones, before even the Tandy PCs died off.
  
  --
  The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
11. Re:Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:46 · Score: 0
  
  Yes, the $0.02 profit on a $0.20 resistor that one nerd bought a couple times a year was going to keep them afloat.
12. Re:Killed by the internet... by RenderSeven · 2017-03-07 12:23 · Score: 1
  
  Yes, the $0.02 profit on a $0.20 resistor that one nerd bought a couple times a year was going to keep them afloat.
  Obviously, no. But any decent retailer would kill to have that level of guaranteed foot traffic every year by people with disposable income. Remember, resistors are at the back of the store, past the flashy displays of geek tech. In The Day a nerd might come in for a resistor and walk out with a flashy new stereo amplifier. Today, if they had played smart, it might have been a 3D printer, gaming headset, drone, or whatever. Even today, if you absolutely have to have a resistor, you have to find a Radio Shack, and odds are you wont walk out with just one resistor. Worse business plans that that have been venture-funded.
13. Re:Killed by the internet... by RenderSeven · 2017-03-07 12:30 · Score: 1
  
  A company that just has no reason to exist any more.
  Not quite. Best Buy has no reason to exist, yet they do. Sometimes, you just have to touch the stuff you're buying. TV's, appliances, game consoles. It may not be a big list but not everything gets bought online. There is a similar list of stuff for Radio Shack. Add to that stuff you need now - batteries, cables, a soldering iron. It wasnt without challenges, but Radio Shack could have been saved.
14. Re:Killed by the internet... by ArmoredDragon · 2017-03-07 12:32 · Score: 2
  
  I don't think it was the internet that killed radio shack. The internet is nice and all, but what if you quickly need an electronics component and don't want to wait for it to ship? Having a local components store nearby is useful. Unfortunately, radio shack decided to really limit their stock of components and shift to being more of a consumer electronics store, thus becoming just another less interesting version of a best buy, circuit city, compusa, etc.
  Other big box stores picked up where radio shack left off by holding a bigger selection of components while also doing a much better job in that consumer electronics role. Namely, stores like Fry's Electronics and Microcenter, which do really well at both components and consumer electronics, whereas radio shack was crappy at both.
15. Re:Killed by the internet... by ShanghaiBill · 2017-03-07 12:32 · Score: 2
  
  RadioShack sticking around this long is actually quite noteworthy!
  It was also quite mysterious. I could never figure out how they did it. When I would walk past the Radio Shack in the mall, it was always empty, except for the two guys working there. Maybe a few times a week they would sell an overpriced battery. Yet despite paying salaries and high mall rents, for year after year they stayed in business. It made no sense.
16. Re:Killed by the internet... by jellomizer · 2017-03-07 12:36 · Score: 2
  
  The problem is it didn't keep to its roots. With the maker movement it could had positioned itself a place for makers to quickly get parts, and also as a place to do 3D printing. As well to get replacement electronic parts. Where you can get parts faster than waiting for shipping. But for the most part they just focused on selling stuff you can get at other retail stores.
  
  --
  If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
17. Re:Killed by the internet... by Ol+Olsoc · 2017-03-07 12:54 · Score: 1
  
  Yes, the $0.02 profit on a $0.20 resistor that one nerd bought a couple times a year was going to keep them afloat.
  Meh. A lot of us nerds spent a lot of money there. But especially after they shifted to focus on cell phones, they kinda didn't figure that all the cool people who bought them weren't going to come in next week and buy another one.I and a lot of others were there every week. I spent thousands at RS every year, and even tried to preferentially support them. But now it's Mouser for parts, and I have to keep a little more stuff in stock.
  And sort of fortunately, there is a for real old school electronic parts store about 75 miles away if I'm in a pinch. Kinda far, but with you are up against the wall....
  
  --
  The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
18. Re: Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 12:56 · Score: 0
  
  Radio Shack you have questions we have blank stares
19. Re:Killed by the internet... by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 14:17 · Score: 1
  
  It was dead before the internet. By a changing DIY hacker culture that made it possible for it to exist in the first place.
20. Re:Killed by the internet... by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 14:22 · Score: 1
  
  I had to pay $20 to get a full set of every possible resistor (and another $20 for caps) ensuring I'll never have to leave the house again. It's enough to hold me over any contingency until fedex can get here tomorrow,
21. Re:Killed by the internet... by hairyfeet · 2017-03-07 14:24 · Score: 1
  
  Yeah I never understood that, it seems so easy to save Radio Shack, just offer 3D printing services and have all of the maker stuff, maybe host some classes on how to make cool stuff with the devices? There ya go, job done. Instead they ended up with the exact same shit you can get at any Walmart Supercenter, except you can also get everything from cookies to cough syrup at the Supercenter as well as cellphones and drones so there really was no point in going to Radio Shack.
  Its a damned shame because back in the day I loved shopping at RS. Anybody else remember Tandy? My very first mixing board was a Tandy, they had a little 4 channel 50w powered mixer with mike and a pair of speakers, took a real beating for years and years before the power amp finally cooked. I used to go there for everything from caps to guitar jacks and at one time about half my electronics were Tandy. I'll have to go to my local RS before they close, I hear they have brought Tandy back for things like PC keyboards...I'll have to grab one for nostalgia before they close, just a damned shame.
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
22. Re:Killed by the internet... by Jayfar · 2017-03-07 14:44 · Score: 1
  
  The problem is it didn't keep to its roots. With the maker movement it could had positioned itself a place for makers to quickly get parts, and also as a place to do 3D printing. As well to get replacement electronic parts. Where you can get parts faster than waiting for shipping. But for the most part they just focused on selling stuff you can get at other retail stores.
  Maybe, but I doubt that model would have supported for than a couple stores in each city, certainly not all of the remaining 1700-some locations.
23. Re: Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 14:48 · Score: 0
  
  +1.
  Tandy computers, Micronta multimeters, and all sorts of VHF and CB equipment. Good times..
24. Re:Killed by the internet... by RenderSeven · 2017-03-07 15:06 · Score: 1
  
  Sure that covers radials, but 204 603 805 and 1206 SMT's? And then you'll need that weird high-power 2W wire wound in the square ceramic case, which by some existential perversion Radio Shack actually carries. Chain-wide the last one they sold was in '67 yet there it lies just mocking you. Murphy's Rule Of Stockrooms says that no matter what you stock up on, it will not be the part you need. I think it applies to lunch condiments as well.
25. Re:Killed by the internet... by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 15:44 · Score: 1
  
  http://www.ebay.com/itm/1206-1... RS did not have that big of a selection of anything, I'm sure you could match their entire inventory for a few tens of dollars - the price that you'd pay for 10 of them at the store. At least get a big enogh supply to keep you busy for a few days to order the exact part from digikey
26. Re:Killed by the internet... by michaelbuddy · 2017-03-07 15:44 · Score: 1
  
  They made a go of it last summer. They were at the midwest maker faire and sponsored a big soldering event teaching kids to solder. It was really cool. I signed up for their email list and they had pretty good emails. Unfortunately I just never reconnected the brand or what i would need at any given time. Their products in the emails were pretty cool things like drones and some audio stuff. I remember thinking man, I think this could work for them, but I wasn't persuaded back into the store b/c of a nearby Microcenter.
  Hmm, all might not be lost. Companies sometimes try to re-logo rebrand and it can work. Or they can totally change the name and try again with a massive marketing campaign. Or they could go totally niche and maybe corner the market on something out of the ordinary but with good profits.
  I'll give you an example. There's a truck stop / gas station called "Loves" It's got some really cool items in there for truckers. They were even carrying a bluetooth headset before Amazon had it. I could drive down there and get it, whereas Amazon didn't even know when it was going to be in stock. Now that was a specialty item, it was expensive and it was *possibly* an early exclusive to Loves. Plus Loves carries other items like that, it's. Some are cool, some are meh but it's a specialty store that's doing fine, plus they sell gas, so that helps.
  Problem with radio shack doing a niche is you have to change marketing tactics totally and it might not even work. Then what you've once again roasted the brand for a percentage of people who might have gone back in as a general store. I dont' really think selling 3D printers is the way for them to go. I do think they could see about a team up with monoprice where I would say some of the better chinese products that rise to the top, get rebranded and can have the mail order and retail outlet. Mono-shack. Hmm, it's a thought.
  Tough problem. I tend to think there's ways around it using the power of authenticity, guerilla marketing or just targeting a key competitor and trying to beat them with brand influence. Despite being an older failing brand, I think more people know Radio Shack than monoprice.
  Just a side note. In the early 2000s, Radio shack would have these big group seminars where if you were looking for job, you could see what radio shack had to offer. I attended one, not knowing what to expect. In the presentation basically they hammered home that they were ALL about cell phones and cell phone commissions. For somebody who thought radio shack might be cool as a little retail job to learn gadgets and products and become a subject matter expert I basically was hearing that "this job is all about commission, and commission comes from cell phones. This really was the cell phone boom time so they probably thought it was a great thing to latch on to, problem was, all the other stores in those same strip malls, half were tanning salons and the other half were your sprint, t-mobile, verizon etc.
  Radio Shack was competing with specialty phone stores in the SAME lot. Enough people went in there, probably got turned off by the phone emphasis and said never again.
  I think Radio Shack also limited themselves by their own standards. They always wanted to be in these high end strip malls where the lease MUST have been astronomical. But radio shack probably had a standard requirement for real estate (much lke McDs and Walgreens all have) but when you place yourself in these areas and start to fail, your options are limited, you start closing stores, then your stock reports look like shit. Your image suffers because of your standards.
  I'm pretty annoyed by both Radio Shack and Sears not being able to figure things out. Merchandising is an art and a science but they have long histories and should be able to get good data and beg borrow and steal ideas and avoid failures for the most part.
  
  --
  ...::----::...
  I am in no way affiliated with this sig.
27. Re:Killed by the internet... by GodfatherofSoul · 2017-03-07 17:03 · Score: 1
  
  Yup, it used to be a hobbyist store. But, then they realized there was quick money to be made mainstreaming. That works until the fickle crowds find another shiny bauble.
  There's a term for this often failing business model that escapes me. But, it happens to niche TV channels a lot. They get excited when they see the ratings the one night they play "Die Hard" then decide to move that way full time. Then, their core audience abandons them. Then they find out they're swimming in large ocean filled with bigger, faster fish.
  
  --
  I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
28. Re: Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 17:27 · Score: 0
  
  You've no idea how many customers we get on the daily complaining about prices and how much cheaper they can find it online. Literally, not a day goes by without hearing it.
29. Re:Killed by the internet... by hairyfeet · 2017-03-07 19:56 · Score: 1
  
  I wasn't talking about selling 3D printers, I was talking about selling 3D printing SERVICES. Do you have ANY idea how many laptops I've junked because they needed one stupid little plastic piece that would cost more than the laptop is worth on eBay, if I could even find one? Hell I would have practically lived at the local Shack if i could just have them measure the part and whip me off a replacement!
  But frankly they really had nothing to lose because it was obvious to anybody with common sense that selling fricking cellphones (cellphones? really? When you can buy those things anywhere and the margins are razor thin?) and drones was just not gonna cut it, too many places already sell those.
  But if they would have gone to selling services AND maker stuff? they could have become the Kinko's of plastic!
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
30. Re:Killed by the internet... by drewsup · 2017-03-07 20:13 · Score: 1
  
  well that and the fact they started wanting my fing post code when i bought batteries there, they drove themselves out of business.
31. Re:Killed by the internet... by adolf · 2017-03-07 22:05 · Score: 1
  
  As a kid, my first soldering irons came from Radio Shack, as did the parts for the projects I'd put together.
  And while I'm plenty damned old (get off my lawn!, etc), this was in the 90s.
  Later on as a quasi-professional-sort-of-guy, I'd regularly buy odds and ends from them out in the field. Need an SMA adapter? Radio Shack. An audio isolation transformer? Radio Shack had a fairly decent one. A bunch of 160 Ohm resistors? Done. A bipolar electrolytic capacitor of who-gives-a-shit value, a toggle switch, and a small plastic box with a lid? No problem. A 75-Ohm BNC terminator? Probably not, but they had BNC connectors and they had 75-Ohm resistors, so...easy-peasy. A 7 Amp slow-blow glass 250VAC fuse? Sure. The funky tiny little 12V alkaline battery that runs the keyfob for my car? [...]
  The biggest problem I had with Radio Shack was once they decided they were going to be a cell phone store above all else, as any clue that the staff may have had immediately dissipated (as clues must naturally do whenever one is in the primary business of selling telephones). It eventually got to the point that they lost the ability to know their own inventory, and I had to take to looking up their own inventory online and showing them that they have twelve in stock of the things that they insist do not exist.
  For me, for awhile, it was more like the corner hardware store that every town should have. I never buy anything very expensive at the my local Ace Hardware either, but if I want help finding a good shovel with a straight-grained handle that's where I go. The coffee pot broke at work one day, so the boss sent me to Ace Hardware for a new one -- and of course, they had an exact replacement (though I was pretty surprised at the time). A 10-32x3/4" button-head socket cap screw? Done. A hundred of them? Sure. Busbar? Yep. Nails? By the pound. Hog ring pliers to fix the seat in my car? Sixteen half-inch wedge anchors? A corkscrew? A clevis hitch, sixty feet of 3/16" galvanized chain, an M8 wingnut, a bunch of rubber hose, some of those special gloves that you use for handling razor wire, an ice pick, a hacksaw, and twenty pounds of lye? Of course.
  They greet me by name every time I walk in the place, having only read my name one time on my credit card. (I really should shop out of town and pay cash when buying special gloves and hacksaws together...) It's a wonderful place to buy all kinds of stuff.
  I've still got Ace Hardwares all over to utilize, but I'm well and truly fucked if I need electronic components out in the field with Radio Shack being gone. Lately, my best option is to hit up small-time AV shops that might still have a repair bench and essentially beg them for parts....or wait for Teh Interwebs to deliver and come back another day.
  
  --
  Kid-proof tablet..
32. Re:Killed by the internet... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 02:08 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  It's interesting, but they do seem to be thriving in lower income and rural areas.
  I haven't seen a videos store on my side of town, but at a recent medical appointment for my daughter, I heard another family telling their kids they could go to the video store if they were good.
  So I pulled up a google map of Indianapolis, and sure enought, there are plenty of Family Videos. Just not around the North Side. I think more affluent areas, where people have CC's, are mostly served by redbox. They also tend to have decent internet and you can get almost any video rental from Amazon.
  
  It's easy to forget that not everybody has access to credit or debit cards. This makes kiosk services like redbox useless, and prevents them from purchasing online, even if they have reliable internet. Even Netflix is difficult to access, although you can get prepaid cards now.
  
  I wonder how access to credit and debit cards affects piracy rates?
  
  --
  Cheap storage VM.
33. Re:Killed by the internet... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 02:12 · Score: 1
  
  That's how these conglomerates like it. They gut companies and hide behind "market conditions", "unfriendly unions", "internet markets", "bad workers", "immigrants stealing jobs", "cheaper outsourcing", etc...
  
  American companies could do alot more for America if they weren't doing so much for the financial sector. We need to bring this sort of thing out of the shadows.
  
  --
  Cheap storage VM.
34. Re:Killed by the internet... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 02:14 · Score: 1
  
  Fry's carries those components, but they are not as numerous.
  
  --
  Cheap storage VM.
35. Re:Killed by the internet... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 02:21 · Score: 1
  
  digikey or mouser should put together a Radio Shack inventory kit.
  
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  Cheap storage VM.
36. Re:Killed by the internet... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 02:33 · Score: 1
  
  wholesale infringement of intellectual property? Sounds like a great business idea.
  
  There is also no really good way to duplicate any old part that comes in off the street. 3d scanners aren't really that good.
  
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  Cheap storage VM.
37. Re:Killed by the internet... by thomn8r · 2017-03-08 04:27 · Score: 1
  
  Internet orders take a minimum of DAYS.
  I needed some caps to fix my TV; I was able to get them shipped next-day for free from Amazon
38. Re: Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 04:45 · Score: 0
  
  I still have my working Radio Shack clock radio I bought in 1982. To replace a broken clock radio bought from W.T. Grants in 1972.
  Don't use a clock radio anymore, just use my smartphone for that.
39. Re: Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 05:48 · Score: 0
  
  "wholesale infringement of intellectual property? Sounds like a great business idea."
  You don't know copyright law. There are exemptions for some of that stuff. For example, my wife can make herself a knockoff of a Vera Wang dress, no copyright infringement. She just can't try to pass it off as the real thing.
40. Re: Killed by the internet... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 08:51 · Score: 1
  
  She can maker herself...
  
  Read that again.
  
  --
  Cheap storage VM.
41. Re:Killed by the internet... by syntotic · 2017-03-08 14:03 · Score: 1
  
  Arab or African or Oriental or Mexican guys? I had issues with all of them trying to buy in Radio Shack at some point. Arabs were re-pricing up SD cards, Africans would pester the electronics section at the back of the store, the Mexican guy was literally hiding the toy I wanted from the window when I entered the store a little bit later, an Oriental woman heard something and started calling me thief from nearly half store to the back. So overall I could not buy two laptops, one toy with electronics, SD cards, an IR thermometer, some whim electronics and re-priced up arduino components I had eyed but did not take immediately. I obtained it all elsewhere, save the electronics that can ONLY be found online (reliable) or in Radio Shack, in NYC. No wonder they are closing! Now I want one of the Radio Shack books and cannot find it anywhere! Not to mention laptops, not the same model again, not the last one for that model, not the small one... etc. I only hope to catch one store in Sale to get electronics again, though their stock is really very sorry no and there is no more arduino components, only some very exciting new electronics DIY toys only available in Radio Shack...
42. Re: Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-09 04:08 · Score: 0
  
  That's probably less than 1% of our customer base tbh
43. Re: Killed by the internet... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-09 04:11 · Score: 0
  
  Granted. But they don't ask for that information anymore.
44. Re:Killed by the internet... by adolf · 2017-03-16 07:43 · Score: 1
  
  They sure do! I'll just drive 2000 miles to the nearest Fry's, that'll solve the problem!
  
  --
  Kid-proof tablet..
After trying to sell phones... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:02 · Score: 0

when I just want to buy a damn resistor, screw them. Of course, I now regret that attitude after all of the Radio Shacks within 20 miles of me have closed. Now I have to pay a heck of a lot in shipping compared to the price of a resistor.
1. Re:After trying to sell phones... by OrangeTide · 2017-03-07 10:11 · Score: 1
  
  I usually pay around $0.85 postage for components from China (aliexpress, etc). Chinapost would charge about 5 CNY for a small parcel to the US, that's 73 cents.
  
  --
  “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
2. Re:After trying to sell phones... by pr0fessor · 2017-03-07 10:24 · Score: 1
  
  My local radio shack was closed with the last bankruptcy and replace with a privately owned electronics store that mostly had only cell phones, tablets, and associated accessories. They are out of business as well.
  There is a privately owned computer electronics store that has computers, laptops, game consoles, games, other software, some TVs, DVD Bluray players, streaming devices, etc... and some of the nifty builder stuff that radio shack used to have though I think they make most of their money on the game consoles and games.
3. Re:After trying to sell phones... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:25 · Score: 0
  
  ... but it takes 5-10 weeks for anything cheap to arrive from China.
4. Re:After trying to sell phones... by LordKronos · 2017-03-07 10:37 · Score: 1
  
  It might cost you 85 cents to get it shipped from China, but meanwhile the 3 to 5 weeks (occasionally even more) that is typical for shipping from China is a long time to wait for someone that has something broken and just needs a damn resistor to fix it.
5. Re:After trying to sell phones... by __aaclcg7560 · 2017-03-07 10:44 · Score: 1
  
  I get free shipping from Jameco for in stock items. Minimum online order is $10 USD. Resistors are typically 100 for $4.
  http://www.jameco.com/Jameco/content/free-shipping-club-electronic-components.html?CID=HPFreeShippingClub
6. Re:After trying to sell phones... by rickb928 · 2017-03-07 10:45 · Score: 1
  
  Sooner or later you buy a kit, develop contacts locally, and share.
  Or you sit alone in the dark, angry at the shipping.
  
  --
  deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
7. Re:After trying to sell phones... by rudy_wayne · 2017-03-07 11:02 · Score: 1
  
  It might cost you 85 cents to get it shipped from China, but meanwhile the 3 to 5 weeks (occasionally even more) that is typical for shipping from China is a long time to wait for someone that has something broken and just needs a damn resistor to fix it.
  I know a couple of people who buy guitars from China (counterfeit Gibsons and Fenders that are even stamped "made in USA") and they claim 12 days or less to get one.
8. Re:After trying to sell phones... by OrangeTide · 2017-03-07 11:04 · Score: 1
  
  Yeah, I'm hacking some Christmas lights with new regulators and I'm still waiting on one last part before I can start. I've got so many projects going on that putting one on a back burner for several weeks is usually not a problem.
  If I need a resistor right away, then yea Radio Shack or maybe Amazon prime would be the fastest. (I have Fry's Electronics, which is great for this stuff, but not everyone has that)
  
  --
  “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
9. Re:After trying to sell phones... by kamaaina · 2017-03-07 11:50 · Score: 1
  
  I recall couple years ago Fry's didn't have some 10k resistors, I was shocked to find out RS did have em, I think it was $2 for 5, but I needed them so I could finish my project over the weekend, since then it looks like Frys realized there was a market for the DIY maker, and their selection of shields and components grew. Also I found a surplus spool of 10k resistors for $10 I don't think I will ever run out.
10. Re:After trying to sell phones... by irving47 · 2017-03-07 12:03 · Score: 1
  
  That's why you buy a $5 box for several thousand, for a dozen of every conceivable value. Or $12 if you want them sorted/labeled. :)
  
  --
  I had a sucky sig.
11. Re:After trying to sell phones... by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 14:29 · Score: 1
  
  Do what I did and stock up before you need it.
  I'm sure you could bank a larger selection than RS for less than $30.
12. Re:After trying to sell phones... by OrangeTide · 2017-03-07 17:23 · Score: 1
  
  There are still a half dozen or so little electronic shops in the silicon valley. I frequently go to Anchor Electronics, it's basically operating under the business model that Radio Shack had 50 years ago. Admittedly, Silicon Valley might be one of the few places in the world where a place like that can still thrive.
  
  --
  “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
13. Re:After trying to sell phones... by TheGratefulNet · 2017-03-08 02:48 · Score: 1
  
  halted (hsc electronics) is still the first place I'll go if I need a part, fast.
  seriously, its one reason I'm still in the bay area. as a maker type, who does hw+sw, places like HSC keep me pretty well stocked.
  
  --
  
  --
  "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
14. Re:After trying to sell phones... by Khyber · 2017-03-08 04:21 · Score: 1
  
  No it doesn't. I get my stuff within two weeks. I just picked up an 80 carat star ruby from India, shipped via China Post. Got it in 10 days.
  
  --
  Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
Again? by PPH · 2017-03-07 10:04 · Score: 1

This must be double secret bankruptcy.

--
Have gnu, will travel.
1. Re:Again? by __aaclcg7560 · 2017-03-07 10:50 · Score: 2
  
  Not exactly. Good assets got spun off into a "new" company while the bad assets sank with the "old" company in bankruptcy court. Those good assets weren't enough to save the new company from being bankrupted. Someone will buy the Radio Shack IP and try again in the future.
Upsell Downside by bill_mcgonigle · 2017-03-07 10:05 · Score: 4, Insightful

Almost nobody will shop at RadioShack anymore because in the 90's they decided that annoying people at the cash registers to buy extra batteries and later to try to switch their cell phone plans was worth alienating the customer base, just as the Internet was coming along to offer people other options.
Meanwhile, retailers like Walmart picked up most of their commonly useful inventory and made mint while not harassing customers with upsales. Apparently Walmart isn't driven by quarter-on-quarter-driven MBA's.
On the other hand, they probably left with big bonuses and nobody knows who they were, and two bankruptcies later they're not black-balled.

--
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
1. Re:Upsell Downside by BarbaraHudson · 2017-03-07 10:13 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  I hated the way they'd want your name and address, even though consumer protection legislation said that you don't have to give it to them. "But the system requires it." F*ck your system. I'm paying cash. So, put down "Johnny Cash." The address? Folsom State Prison.
  Too bad the Internet hasn't learned the lesson that when you try to data mine the customer, you alienate them.
  
  --
  "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
2. Re:Upsell Downside by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:19 · Score: 0
  
  you think battery thing was in the 90s? It was happening in the 80s also.
3. Re:Upsell Downside by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:50 · Score: 0
  
  I used to work at RS. And I was soo emberrased to aslo ask for Name, Phone Number, Etc. at the register. True, it is helpful when making returns, but I'm pretty certain there are better ways to print a receipt without all that stuff on it. People were often uncomfortable, others just gave cartoon names & contact info knowing darn well if 'something' was entered it would just hurry the process along.
  Yeah that place upsells too. Again I felt like the popcorn guy at the movies: Wanna jumbo size for only 25cents more?
  Look RS, just let people come & go as they please and they will return!
4. Re:Upsell Downside by JDHannan · 2017-03-07 11:18 · Score: 1
  
  We absolutely needed AAA batteries and Radio Shack was the nearest place that had them. I bought a 4 pack and the guy asked me "Do you also use AA batteries?" in an attempt to get me to purchase some of those as well.
  I told him "No, I only use AAA batteries" and left with my purchase.
5. Re:Upsell Downside by edx93 · 2017-03-07 11:29 · Score: 1
  
  This. Also, I recently (read: two days ago) went into a Radio Shack advertising 30-50% off everything. Naturally, I poked my head in to see what they had. I looked at an SD card for my Switch and dropped my jaw when saw that a 16GB card was selling for $30. The employee was quick to point out the 30% discount, which would take it down to...$20. A quick amazon search shows that it can go for $7. I doubt that it was the same make/model/brand, but a 3x price differential is amazing - after the discount, mind you. I'm actually surprised they haven't folded for good a while back. ah well, better late than never...
6. Re:Upsell Downside by MightyMartian · 2017-03-07 11:35 · Score: 2
  
  In the early 1980s. I got my first RadioShack computer around 1982, and they were hawking their batteries then. Mind you, the price wasn't bad, so I didn't complain. They also asked for contact information, and I remember being 10 or 11 years old and getting the first mail actually addressed to me, a monthly RadioShack flyer! It seems stupid now, but I remember pouring over the computer section of the catalog, salivating over the speech synthesis cartridge for the Color Computer or Brick Out being played on a Model 4.
  
  --
  The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
7. Re:Upsell Downside by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:58 · Score: 0
  
  Pouring is what you do with gravy. Moron.
8. Re:Upsell Downside by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 12:33 · Score: 0
  
  Wallmart sells resistors and capacitors?
  That’s what I’ve been buying at RadioShack.
9. Re:Upsell Downside by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 14:37 · Score: 1
  
  speech synthesis cartridge for the Color Computer
  
  I wanted that so badly. /Was actually looking at trs80 computers this past weekend on ebay. I've decided to buy all the things that I wanted but could never afford when I was a kid. Still waiting for a connection machine to show up, but probably still wouldn't be able to afford it.
10. Re:Upsell Downside by Eravnrekaree · 2017-03-07 14:58 · Score: 1
  
  Amazon did it in. I don't know if anything could have saved it.
11. Re:Upsell Downside by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 15:48 · Score: 0
  
  They were a bit overzealous about asking for name and address for buying something as stupid as a watch battery.
12. Re:Upsell Downside by rwyoder · 2017-03-07 17:46 · Score: 1
  
  I hated the way they'd want your name and address, even though consumer protection legislation said that you don't have to give it to them. "But the system requires it." F*ck your system. I'm paying cash. So, put down "Johnny Cash." The address? Folsom State Prison.
  And if they bother you again, just remind them of what went down in Reno. ;-)
13. Re:Upsell Downside by rcase5 · 2017-03-07 23:44 · Score: 1
  
  I worked for them for a few months in '89/'90. I HATED it! They treat their employees like crap! They expected us to sell but didn't really give us the latitude to make good sales, especially if we happened to work at a low-volume store. They would track to see if we got customers names and addresses, and if we didn't ask the question enough they would give us a hard time. I hated asking for that info because I felt like I was invading their privacy. It was also Russian roulette if, when we asked for the customer's name and address, we would get a hissy attitude or a reaction of delight, especially since those on the mailing list would be sent the Radio Shack catalog every year, which was much coveted among loyal customers. Oh, and there was a way to override the system if the system said the name and address was required (usually when issuing a refund), but it wasn't abundantly clear how to do that, so it was easy for most salespeople to miss that feature. But if they were saying it was required as part of a regular sale, they were probably lying in order to keep their bosses off their backs.
  As an employer, Radio Shack sucks! But if you needed an odd electronic part, audio/video component or battery, it was a great place to go. In a way, it's a shame Radio Shack is apparently going away; it marks the end of an era. But given how the company was run over the years and how they treated the people who worked for them, it isn't a surprise, and I wont shed too many tears over their apparent demise.
14. Re:Upsell Downside by BadTuna · 2017-03-08 01:19 · Score: 1
  
  I hated the way they'd want your name and address, even though consumer protection legislation said that you don't have to give it to them. "But the system requires it." F*ck your system.
  Exactly why I quit going there.
  
  --
  Your sig here!
15. Re:Upsell Downside by dwillden · 2017-03-08 04:21 · Score: 1
  
  Funny, I always just politely refused and they just rang my purchases up.
  
  --
  I'm too lazy to compose a creative sig.
16. Re:Upsell Downside by BarbaraHudson · 2017-03-08 05:56 · Score: 1
  
  Funny, I always just politely refused and they just rang my purchases up.
  Probably because they had run into people like me who had pointed out that it's illegal too many times.
  
  --
  "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
17. Re: Upsell Downside by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 05:59 · Score: 0
  
  "speech synthesis cartridge for the Color Computer"
  Somewhere I think I still have one of these. Never used it though.
18. Re: Upsell Downside by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 06:02 · Score: 0
  
  "Do you also use AA batteries?"
  Or you could act all upset and offended and yell "AA? Do I look like a fucking alcoholic?"
It's not over by mea2214 · 2017-03-07 10:13 · Score: 1, Funny

Over? Did you say over? Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!
1. Re: It's not over by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:33 · Score: 0
  
  The Germans didn't bomb Pearl Harbor... it was an inside job, just like 9-11.
2. Re:It's not over by ImprovOmega · 2017-03-07 10:36 · Score: 2
  
  Germans?
  
  Forget it, he's rolling.
3. Re: It's not over by AK+Marc · 2017-03-07 11:18 · Score: 1
  
  Was the Bowling Green Massacre an inside job?
  
  --
  Learn to love Alaska
4. Re:It's not over by TimSSG · 2017-03-07 12:57 · Score: 1
  
  Germans? Forget it, he's rolling.
  
  Now, that was good. I forgot what character/actor said that in the movie. Tim S.
5. Re: It's not over by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 14:29 · Score: 0
  
  No, that was Outdoor Bowling.
Privatize the gains, socialize the losses by twebb72 · 2017-03-07 10:16 · Score: 1

Their bankruptcy filing should be thrown out by the judge. Its absurd that they can turn around a bankruptcy before the ink is dry on the first one.
1. Re:Privatize the gains, socialize the losses by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:26 · Score: 0
  
  Not really socializing the losses in this case, though. The losers are the bankers who thought it was a good idea to loan money to Radio Shack. Turns out it wasn't. They presumably factored their knowledge of bankruptcy laws into the decision, too.
2. Re:Privatize the gains, socialize the losses by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:34 · Score: 0
  
  This is how it normally goes - first bankruptcy is 'Here's how we want to turn this thing around - give us a bit of breathing room, ok?'. This one is more 'Hey, Judge, can you decide who gets the money when we sell off what's left?'
  Sometimes the first bankruptcy results in a company that's worth something and eventually most folks get paid.
  The real problem here is that whatever plan they had didn't seem to work, and I would be very surprised if it ever had a chance of working. Probably the first bankruptcy should have ended in liquidation.
3. Re:Privatize the gains, socialize the losses by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:44 · Score: 0
  
  Their bankruptcy filing should be thrown out by the judge. Its absurd that they can turn around a bankruptcy before the ink is dry on the first one.
  This isn't even the same company. General Wireless is the one filing for bankruptcy this time. Also, the creditors get to decide if a plan is good or not. It isn't up to a judge for good reason. The government doesn't cover the loses at all. You're thinking about banks.
Lol "RadioShack" by JustAnotherOldGuy · 2017-03-07 10:17 · Score: 2

"...The beleaguered company, which does business as RadioShack, operates outlets that share space with Sprint's retail locations"
Let's be honest- today's RadioShack is little more that a Sprint store with a small shelf in back where you can buy 9-volt batteries and red-and-black colored wire for $8.99 a roll.

--
Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
1. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by jimbob6 · 2017-03-07 10:22 · Score: 1
  
  This is exactly why Radio shack is failing.
  It used to be an electronics enthusiast store which there is still probably a market for.
  There clueless management tried to turn it into a consumer electronics store.
  Who the hell would buy consumer electronics from Radio Shack?
2. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:29 · Score: 0
  
  A company like Adafruit or Sparkfun should lease up the old spaces and make them a retail outlet for their wares. They atleast sell the stuff that Radio Shacks should be selling.
3. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:46 · Score: 0
  
  except they DID carry hipster non since maker shit from make, seeeeeeeeed studio, arduino and a number of other companies, the thing was it would cost you the price of buying it online + 25% + tax so a 20$ arduino shield would end up being 53$ at the counter
4. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by rickb928 · 2017-03-07 10:49 · Score: 1
  
  That, and the 'electronics hobbyist' morphed from ham operators and tinkerers to 'computer enthusiasts'. Radio Shack didn't make that transition well at all.
  Add in mail order, and the computer revolution swept by them like a tsunami.
  Now, with the maker revolution well underway, no one buys at stores. Indeed, China Post delivers so much stuff, much of the business is direct to China.
  Inevitable. I don't even go the 12 miles to Fry's for simple stuff, Amazon Prime is worth it.
  
  --
  deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
5. Re: Lol "RadioShack" by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:51 · Score: 0
  
  Radio Shack lost their sense of purpose. Put a store with cool stuff, Raspberry pi, build yourself products and I'd be there every week.
  Americans are too stupid anymore though. If it's not in a box like cereal, it's too hard to turn on or you have to put it together, then you can forget about your average millennial. They aren't interested in anything besides Instagram.
  Bottom line, Radio Shack is f*cked.
6. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by __aaclcg7560 · 2017-03-07 11:01 · Score: 1
  
  It used to be an electronics enthusiast store which there is still probably a market for.
  Back in the day when most electronics were fixable by the average person. I started taking electronic courses, saw the writing on the wall, and dropped electronics as a college major in the early 1990's. Best decision I ever made. Most of the electrical engineers I knew from back then are doing IT today. And they're pissed I'm making more money than they are because I got into IT ten years before they did.
7. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:08 · Score: 1
  
  This is exactly why Radio shack is failing.
  It used to be an electronics enthusiast store which there is still probably a market for.
  That's the problem. There is NO market for electronics enthusiasts any more. The majority of the population is now completely retarded and just wants to stare at a phone screen all day. The number of "electronics enthusiasts" is so small that its just not a sustainable business any more. Its sad and I wish it wasn't that way. But that's the world we live in now.
8. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by BronsCon · 2017-03-07 11:18 · Score: 1
  
  $20 + $5 =.... just how much sales tax are you paying?! 112%?
  
  --
  APK quotes people (including myself) without context and should not be trusted. Just thought you should know.
9. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by AK+Marc · 2017-03-07 11:20 · Score: 2
  
  Radio Shack could have resisted the transition, by having Morse Code competitions, and family radio days, and other things. But instead, the one near me dropped components, and sold phones and RC cars. I think their component section consisted of extension cords, and things like that you could get anywhere else. They adapted, and adapted poorly.
  
  --
  Learn to love Alaska
10. Re: Lol "RadioShack" by hguorbray · 2017-03-07 11:33 · Score: 2
  
  the one by my house actually has Arduino, Rasberry Pi and lots of good cables and connectors
  
  Of course this is Silicon Valley (Fremont)
  
  and we also have Fry's and Central Computing, so although I will be sad to see them go I will still be able to get stuff like what they carried and more
  
  -I'm just sayin'
11. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by irving47 · 2017-03-07 12:05 · Score: 1
  
  To be fair, they tried harder than that. They started selling arduinos and other microprocessor kits and the little sensors, shields, and accessories to accompany them. But when the package of 20 male-male jumper wires were going for $9.95 instead of $4 from Amazon prime or $1 from ebay (slowchinaboat), they were fighting a losing battle.
  
  --
  I had a sucky sig.
12. Re: Lol "RadioShack" by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 14:44 · Score: 1
  
  I'd be there every week.
  Every week, I buy all the new sensors, etc that can be plugged into an aruino/pi. This comes out to maybe $10/month. Unless there are a lot more people like me that I don't know about, I don't think it's a large enough market for a retail company to survive. I even see sewer ebay sellers now that there used to be.
13. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by Eravnrekaree · 2017-03-07 14:52 · Score: 1
  
  Radio Shack has been selling consumer electronics for a long, long time, over 50 years at least. And yes, people did buy stuff there. The hobbyist market is not large enough to keep them alive, just not enough people like that around. Amazon did it in. Amazon can run losses for 20 years because its a wall street darling, so its been undercutting everyone else. Antitrust behaviour, if you ask me.
14. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 04:36 · Score: 0
  
  A few weeks ago I needed a 22 microfarad electrolytic capacitor for a project and I was able to go into a local radio shack and buy one. Sometimes the place comes in handy.
15. Re:Lol "RadioShack" by samwichse · 2017-03-08 05:31 · Score: 1
  
  Aw man, I would love an Adafruit store near me.
  That would be freaking awesome.
16. Re: Lol "RadioShack" by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 15:03 · Score: 0
  
  I just want Limor to be near me. That would be awesome.
The only surprise here... by damn_registrars · 2017-03-07 10:25 · Score: 1

... is that RadioShack collapsed before Sears. My corporate dead pool for 2017 had Sears first, then RadioShack. I still can't find anyone who can explain why Sears is still open at all at this point, especially as they just sold off many of their best-known brands (including Craftsman, Kenmore, and Die-Hard).

--
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
1. Re:The only surprise here... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:28 · Score: 0
  
  and Lands' End. Really.
2. Re:The only surprise here... by avandesande · 2017-03-07 10:29 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  It takes an ocean liner a lot longer to sink than a dinghy.....
  
  --
  love is just extroverted narcissism
3. Re: The only surprise here... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:46 · Score: 0
  
  It's a real estate scam. The guy who owns the buildings is milking the company for rent cheques.
4. Re:The only surprise here... by rickb928 · 2017-03-07 10:52 · Score: 1
  
  Sears is probably still in business because they *own* their real estate, mostly. No rent, easier to make the payroll.
  And they will get stuck with that previously desirable real estate as brick n mortar gives way to online sales.
  Retraction in retail should really pick up in 2017. All you fast food workers should jump on that and demand your $12 minimum wage, and accelerate the conversion to automated systems.
  
  --
  deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
5. Re:The only surprise here... by Deadstick · 2017-03-07 11:03 · Score: 1
  
  I used to love buying tools from the backroom order desk at Sears. You could order anything in the catalog, usually for a little off in-store price, and pickup a few days later...and what you paid for was what you ordered, which might or might not be what you got. Orders were packed by people who, quite literally, didn't know a drill bit from a drill press. And of course, if the error went the wrong way, you could always return the item.
6. Re: The only surprise here... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:04 · Score: 0
  
  As an anonymous coward, this. He spun off all the real estate into a REIT (Seritage Growth Properties), then collects the rent from the stores.
  Oh, and he got his hand slapped for it, too. Bloomberg. Sears Holding the company has very little of value left inside of it.
7. Re:The only surprise here... by avandesande · 2017-03-07 11:14 · Score: 1
  
  I stopped going there when craftsmen stopped being made in USA. It was the only thing that differentiated their tools. I've switched to ELORA they are much nicer anyway.
  
  --
  love is just extroverted narcissism
8. Re:The only surprise here... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 12:10 · Score: 0
  
  where do they own their real estate? They are attached to malls in most places and malls do rarely sell their real estate out.
  You're thinking of McDonald's. They own most of the real estate that their franchisees run.
9. Re: The only surprise here... by rickb928 · 2017-03-07 13:01 · Score: 1
  
  Read up.
  
  --
  deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
10. Re:The only surprise here... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 13:09 · Score: 0
  
  Sears owns their free standing stores while the attached mall stores are in long term (10+ years) leases. Sears is still in business because crazy Eddie Lampert keeps loaning it money, even though he owns the company.
11. Re:The only surprise here... by hairyfeet · 2017-03-07 14:36 · Score: 2
  
  I can explain why Sears is still open, lawnmowers and washer/dryer combos. You get those from some place like Walmart or Lowes it doesn't matter how much money you spend its still gonna be junk that will be lucky if it lasts a year and a half, but you buy those at Sears? They cost a little more but you get 5 year warranties that you will never need because it'll easily last past that with seriously heavy use.
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
12. Re:The only surprise here... by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 14:48 · Score: 1
  
  I thought retail was supposed to collapse in 2009 and have a much bigger impact than housing...but it never did from what I saw. I look every time I go out.
13. Re:The only surprise here... by jeff4747 · 2017-03-07 15:10 · Score: 1
  
  I still can't find anyone who can explain why Sears is still open at all at this point
  Ok, I'll explain it:
  
  as they just sold off many of their best-known brands (including Craftsman, Kenmore, and Die-Hard).
  Hmmm....wonder how they have the money to stay in business....
14. Re:The only surprise here... by guises · 2017-03-07 20:46 · Score: 1
  
  Sears is still doing good business in some locations. All of the stores that I know of in the US are doing poorly, but I know a few stores in Canada which are doing great. Meanwhile, there are Radioshacks in Canada but they're owned by a different company - the US-based Radioshack company does business in the US and Mexico and that's mostly it. They have very few other international stores.
15. Re:The only surprise here... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 01:52 · Score: 0
  
  Aren't Elora tools german?
  Actually, do any retail stores still sell US made tools to consumers (not pro outlets like Mac or Snap-On)?
16. Re:The only surprise here... by hey! · 2017-03-08 02:07 · Score: 1
  
  Like Sears. It used to be by far the dominant American retailer, a kind of combination of WalMart and Amazon with its extensive and paid-for retail and distribution network and pioneering mail order business. What killed them is complacency and lack of focus. Management had a money-making retail machine that was so large it couldn't really grow. Rather than focusing on running that cash cow efficiency, management let the retail cash cow fall apart as they tried to grow the company by moving into other things like banking and real estate developing.
  Don't get me wrong, I'm not against diversifying, but I remember going to Sears in the 60s with my Mom, and it was a horrible place: dirty and disorganized and badly lit. And they terminated their catalog business just in time to miss the opening up of the Internet to commercial traffic. Had they played their cards conservatively Sears would have been Amazon.
  
  --
  Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
17. Re:The only surprise here... by damn_registrars · 2017-03-08 02:55 · Score: 1
  
  as they just sold off many of their best-known brands (including Craftsman, Kenmore, and Die-Hard).
  Hmmm....wonder how they have the money to stay in business....
  That brought in about enough money to keep the lights on a little bit longer. It doesn't bring in enough money to cover payroll for very long. Equally important, it just took away one of the biggest incentives they ever had for people to go to their stores. Why go to Sears when you can get Craftsman and Kenmore at Home Depot or Lowe's? Why go to Sears when tons of tire shops now sell Die-Hard batteries?
  
  Eddie Lampert is living out his Lord of the Flies fantasy with his employees right now, with disastrous effects. If customers don't want to go in the door because they can't stand how the stores are run, they'll have a really hard time staying afloat. The last time I went in to a tools section at my local Sears it took over 10 minutes to get an employee to a register while 6 customers were walking around in the area (and employees from other departments were following orders to not help anyone in tools). If any of those 6 had been of the unscrupulous variety they could have easily walked out the door with hundreds of dollars of merchandise before the employee had even shown up; and as the parking lot was mostly empty they could have been long gone before anyone had noticed.
  
  --
  Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
18. Re:The only surprise here... by damn_registrars · 2017-03-08 02:58 · Score: 1
  
  Sears almost never signs a lease. Even when they are attached to the largest malls in the country they almost without exception insist on owning their property. While other anchors will lease, Sears many decades ago made the decision to essentially never begin negotiations unless they could own their property, regardless of how large the mall was or any other terms. Their real estate portfolio is massive, but until they start selling off some of their underperforming stores (which is difficult to determine as none of them are performing well) it will be very hard to determine the value.
  
  --
  Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
19. Re:The only surprise here... by damn_registrars · 2017-03-08 03:05 · Score: 1
  
  Craftsman is a very confusing and ambiguous situation. A lot of their tools are now Chinese made, but not all of them. Of course the "evolv" brand is 100% Chinese, but amongst what is stamped Craftsman you have to examine the individual piece to know where it was made.
  
  From what I've seen, all the Craftsman power tools are now Chinese made. All the automotive tools (jacks, lifts, etc) are as well. Hand tools, however, are a mixed bag. You can come across the same ratchet twice and one will be American the other Chinese. It seems that in general the ones in the combo packs are Chinese and the ones sold individually are American but that is not the case every time. The screwdrivers seem to be mostly American made - particularly the rare "Professional" ones.
  
  Indeed Craftsman used to be the last holdout. The store branded tools at Lowe's and Home Depot were American made for a while (back in the 90s and very early 00s) but went all Chinese a while back. Making things even more frustrating is the use of other brand names that are associated with American companies (DeWalt being a great example) to sell Chinese made hand tools.
  
  So where to get American made tools without contacting your Snap-on, Mac, or Matco rep? I have good luck on craigslist. Sometimes good tools show up at pawn shops as well.
  
  --
  Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
20. Re:The only surprise here... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 04:14 · Score: 1
  
  If they enter Bankruptcy before July 2017, there are look back provisions that would negatively effect some of the stuff that was spun off (to enrich specific investors). I doubt they make it to the end of the year without liquidation.
  
  --
  Cheap storage VM.
21. Re:The only surprise here... by pnutjam · 2017-03-08 04:16 · Score: 1
  
  Sears spun off all it's real estate into some sort of real estate holding vehicle. It will be two years this July, which is probably when we'll start seeing liquidation or bankruptcy. Anything before the two year mark allows the courts to dissolve those arrangements and stockholders could claw back some value.
  
  --
  Cheap storage VM.
22. Re:The only surprise here... by avandesande · 2017-03-08 04:25 · Score: 1
  
  Yes they are German. There was something to be said about having a storefront you could get decent quality tools within driving distance. Now I am stuck buying online I might as well get the best tool for my money and german tools are the best. The tools are carefully made to be as light as possible and have matte finish. Once you try them out you won't go back....
  
  --
  love is just extroverted narcissism
23. Re:The only surprise here... by desdinova+216 · 2017-03-08 07:10 · Score: 1
  
  Sears was the Amazon of the pre internet age
24. Re:The only surprise here... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 07:52 · Score: 0
  
  That's what we used to say about Craftsman. I kept going after they replaced all the other merchandise with K-Mart brands. Then one day I go in to pick up a wrench, and, dafuq is this? It's a sand cast piece of shit from China.
  I went back one more time and bought a deep freezer so my wife could stockpile breastmilk. It failed in four months and ruined all of it. The warranty doesn't matter when you have a crazy post-partum woman sobbing uncontrollably and throwing things at you.
  Sears is, in my opinion, the best example of corporate failure. Now I find out from this thread that they're responsible for Borders, too. I am entirely not surprised.
25. Re:The only surprise here... by avandesande · 2017-03-08 10:51 · Score: 1
  
  I remember going to sears(maybe the last time I went there?) to try to get a decent metal Christmas tree stand... no luck! Aisles of glowing inflatable santa type crap and not a single stand.
  
  --
  love is just extroverted narcissism
Not good for those of us in rural areas by RubberDuckie · 2017-03-07 10:32 · Score: 2

I moved to a fairly rural area about four years ago. Before that, I don't think I'd been inside a Radio Shack in at least 10 years. Now that there are no large electronic stores locally, RS is the only place that I get get electronics. I've probably been there more in the last four years than the entire rest of my life. The selection isn't great, but it's better than nothing if I need something today.
1. Re:Not good for those of us in rural areas by dgatwood · 2017-03-07 12:03 · Score: 1
  
  My experience (as someone originally from a rural area) was that RS's selection wasn't significantly better than Walmart, and its prices were generally significantly higher.
  
  --
  Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.
2. Re:Not good for those of us in rural areas by thinkwaitfast · 2017-03-07 14:51 · Score: 1
  
  For $40-$100 you can buy a complete inventory clone of a radio shack on ebay. Do it now and restock with individual items when you use something.
Overpriced cables by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 10:46 · Score: 0

Maybe it wasn't a good idea to sell mini-usb cables for $24.99. I still hoard them because my perception of their value is skewed.
Battery Club 4 life! by Thud457 · 2017-03-07 10:51 · Score: 1

Dammit, you mean I'm going to have to buy my own batteries now?!!

And GET OFF of my lawn!

--
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
1. Re:Battery Club 4 life! by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:00 · Score: 0
  
  ...And GET OFF of my lawn!
  
  Oh yeah? Remember Realistic Lifetime vacuum tubes? Where they would replace a blown tube for life? If not, then get off MY lawn.
2. Re:Battery Club 4 life! by NormalVisual · 2017-03-07 11:52 · Score: 1
  
  Hell, I remember when they had tube testers at the local drugstore.
  
  --
  Please stand clear of the doors, por favor mantenganse alejado de las puertas
3. Re: Battery Club 4 life! by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 14:55 · Score: 0
  
  Woolworths was the best for that sort of thing.. like a walmart but with a lunch counter and so much more.
Killed by Obama's regulations... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:06 · Score: 0

Why do small electronics stores need transgender washrooms for employees, even if they don't hire LGBTQID deviants?
Onion called it by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:07 · Score: 0

http://www.theonion.com/article/even-ceo-cant-figure-out-how-radioshack-still-in-b-2190
"Even the name 'RadioShack'—can you imagine two less appealing words placed next to one another?" Day said. "What is that, some kind of World War II terminology? Are ham radio operators still around, even? Aren't we in the digital age?"
1. Re:Onion called it by michaelbuddy · 2017-03-07 16:05 · Score: 1
  
  Crazy thing, I think if they sold OLD radios like 30s and 40s style wood, of high quality, they'd probably stil be in business. You want a new radio in a nice wood cabinet, that's a product that you nearly have to make to get right. Most of the ones that look cool are made like shit.
  
  --
  ...::----::...
  I am in no way affiliated with this sig.
2. Re: Onion called it by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 16:19 · Score: 0
  
  HAM radio is the thread that keeps communications going in disasters that take out cell towers and landlines.
Radio Shack died a long time ago by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:11 · Score: 0

What was once a store for hobbyists died a long time ago. Really sad a bunch of money was wasted trying to keep a dead horse alive.
Shacked by Tablizer · 2017-03-07 11:15 · Score: 1

They should change their name to "RadioShaft"

--
Table-ized A.I.
1. Re:Shacked by Megane · 2017-03-08 08:58 · Score: 1
  
  I used to enjoy misreading a previous version of their logo as "Radio Shock".
  
  --
  #naabhaprzrag, #sverubfr-000, #agi-fcbafberq, negvpyr[pynff*=' negvpyr-ary-'] { qvfcynl: abar !vzcbegnag; }
$60k is more than enough by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:38 · Score: 0

$60k is more than enough to renovate a small retail store with less than 1/2 of that in inventory and no other equipment other than shelving. A single McDonald's kitchen is going to cost 6 figures alone.
To bad piss poor management killed off yet another quality brick-n-mortar store.
Missed by krray · 2017-03-07 11:42 · Score: 1

Radio Shack, of old, has long been missed. They were dust in the 90's for me. Forget all the up-selling batteries, phones, what's your ZIP? marketing annoyances... I mean the STUFF Radio Shack of the 70's and 80's had. By the 90's it was all gone, too much cell phone, and too much MADE IN CHINA crap that broke too easily.

I just remember way back when. First place I saw a TRS-80. I still use an alarm clock I bought there in '79 I think. I even remember how COOL it was. Compact. Almost LED'ish, and a auto-light sensing dimmer. That didn't make it quite dark enough for me.

Back to Radio Shack. Get some wire. I want a push button double toggle switch -- to cut full power +/- to the display circuit only. Grab a bit - cut a hole, and wire it up. I still push that button to this day. It's probably why it has lasted so long -- the display is usually off...and hasn't faded either.

Synthesizers, drum-pad sets, ah the music you could make there! Bought my first keyboard there. I wouldn't have if I couldn't play with it, in the store, for months -- until I could save up enough to one day finally be able to walk in and buy it.

And what happened to those 100 in one, 150 in one, or the holy grail (for me :) 500 in one electronics sets you could wire up. It had resistors, meters, light sensor, tons of various wire lengths with a great big 11x14 book of schematics and instructions on how to wire cool projects up? It's what got me into electronics, computers, et al. It's the reason the garage door light triggers a circuit and rings the house doorbell today. And why I can change my lights to any color and control them from anywhere on the planet. I was doing that in the 90's -- and sadly Radio Shack never had the parts I needed.

That Radio Shack has, sadly, long since been gone.
1. Re: Missed by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 15:15 · Score: 0
  
  I still use my electronics board for quick circuit tests.
  http://www.zeroidz.com/acons/DEL2.JPG
  http://www.zeroidz.com/acons/DEL1.JPG
2. Re: Missed by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 16:22 · Score: 0
  
  I've still got mine from Lafeyette.
3. Re: Missed by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 16:26 · Score: 0
  
  same AC...fixing typo...Lafayette
yup by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 11:45 · Score: 0

I remeber going into radioshack to get a couple common rc servos for a halloween decoration I wanted to make. Browsing the component selection I was asked what I was looking for. I asked if they had any servos in stock. The clerk said that she didn't know what a servo was. I said a servo motor, It's a little hobby motor, for electronics projects. It looks like a little black box with wires. She asked what I was using it for. I paused wondering why that mattered, and said I was using it in a pumpkin for a decoration. She responded that she didn't think that they had any pumpkin motors in stock. I picked out a couple of Parallax boards that were on clearance and haven't gone back since.
Store format by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 12:03 · Score: 0

Radio Shack had full shop electronic stores, but closed them long time ago.
Sad ending by p51d007 · 2017-03-07 12:33 · Score: 2

I remember what they were 45 years ago, when I was a teenager just getting my feet wet in electronics. You could walk into one, talk to the store clerks about what you were building and they would offer suggestion, different things about electronics. I went into one about a year ago, looking for a 100uf 25volt electrolytic capacitor, and the clerk had NO IDEA what I was asking for.
1. Re:Sad ending by jm6032 · 2017-03-08 02:20 · Score: 1
  
  I, too, find this sad news. I rediscovered Radio Shack about a year ago. During the past year, RS started stocking more and more Maker items including processor and sensor modules, tools, components, and more. I was encouraged--RS was starting to pick up on their roots.
2. Re:Sad ending by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 03:18 · Score: 0
  
  Electronics is a mature commodity these days. The only reason you got your feet wet in electronics as a teen was because there was stuff to be built.
  Now you have your computer to process all the information you could possibly want. Electronics is disposable. Software is king.
3. Re:Sad ending by jomama717 · 2017-03-08 06:23 · Score: 1
  
  Try Fry's Electronics if you have access to one, you can still get this kind of service/interaction there - YMMV of course...
  
  --
  while [ 1 ]; do echo -n -e "\xe2\x95\xb$((($RANDOM&1)+1))"; done
4. Re:Sad ending by Megane · 2017-03-08 09:07 · Score: 1
  
  In Austin, there is a Radio Shack across the street from a Fry's. Yes, seriously. A few years ago when they closed a few stores (about two years before the bankruptcy), the two RS locations near where I lived were both closed, and that one was kept open.
  Now that I am moving back to San Antonio, I'm going to miss the 15-minute drive to Fry's. They were planning to open a store here right before they had bad financial troubles that made it hard enough for them just to stay in business. It's the largest city in Texas with no Fry's. There are other places I can go, but none of them have all the computer parts and electronic parts under the same roof. And the nearest RS I know of is halfway across town from me.
  
  --
  #naabhaprzrag, #sverubfr-000, #agi-fcbafberq, negvpyr[pynff*=' negvpyr-ary-'] { qvfcynl: abar !vzcbegnag; }
Ghost memories by RubberDogBone · 2017-03-07 12:38 · Score: 1

Was out at the local strip mall today and had a sudden memory of how Radio Shack stores used to smell. They had a distinctive aroma, and no, it wasn't from the workers.
Oh well.

--
Sig for hire.
If I buy a Rasp. PI by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 15:40 · Score: 0

I promise I'll at least make an attempt to give RS the business. I do appreciate what they're trying to do. Not promising I'll end up buying it there though.
Return to your roots, Rdio Shack by Bartles · 2017-03-07 15:42 · Score: 1

There is a large maker community out there, that currently has to use mailorder for any small components. Being able to make a 20 minute trip is worth a huge markup on a 2.00 component, rather than having to wait 3 days for it to be delivered by mail. Personally, I haven't set foot into a Radio Shack store since I realized their selection of various components suck. Just like their electronics.
Re:Killed by the internet...Bullshit by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 15:45 · Score: 0

They had an Internet store. Their entire business didn't have to collapse.
Re:Trump Supporters by michaelbuddy · 2017-03-07 16:06 · Score: 0

you mean "murderERS" FTFY. As a Trump supporter you almost offended me with this spelling fail.

--
...::----::...
I am in no way affiliated with this sig.
Killed by the death of the mall... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-07 22:36 · Score: 0

When I went to malls, I would always at least go into the Radio Shack to look at the gizmos. Most people don't even go to malls anymore.
Radio Shack still doesn't get it by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 01:09 · Score: 0

Radio Shack still doesn't get it.
There is no profit in being an also-ran Cell Phone and Satellite TV store. If you haven't noticed, there is a cell phone store on every street corner, and they all do it better than Radio Shack.
Radio Shack has refused to adapt with the times and deserves to die as a result. When I walk into a Radio Shack, I should see Raspberry Pis, Arduinos, Robot parts, radio kits, DIY networking gear, ham radios, and other things that are related to modern "tinkering." Instead I see Sprint cell phones that don't qualify for promotions, DirecTV which is dead technology, cheap Chinese drones and other toys, and other crap that has no appeal to anybody.
Let them die. Please.
Serves them right by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 01:49 · Score: 0

They keep trying to rejigger their model and won't accept that people don't want to buy a cellphone plan at the register when they're just trying to get out of there with a 3 dollar headphone adapter. "Do you want a TV with that?" "No." "Do you want a service plan on this adapter?" "No." "Will that be on your Radio Shack charge plan?" "NO." "Do you want to open.." "NOOO." "Are you happy with your cellphone..." "DIE DIE DIE DIE"
And that's after four bored Sprint reps have followed you around the store bugging you about cell phones.
If they won't listen to their customers, good riddance.
i got my name purgedfrom their... by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 03:14 · Score: 0

...system, no problemo.
Walked in with their product mail to me, marked return to sender. As I walk through the "En-trance" door I lose sight of reality and my maraquas spring from my hips to a rife Galicean beat. I grab my business card from my shirt pocket by the teeth and crab walk to the front of the line like the biggest asshole that overwrote an unknown sonnet of Beethoven or Tchaikovsky with "b00bs" on the verry chalkboard.
At front of the line, the register remarks chu-ching and I address the Clerk, "hello, my brother died in a fire and the system needs to be updated that nonone by this name at that address. I however am the Sheriff of this county and I would like to sognup for this periodical and here is my card with address on it."
She looked at me,
behind all that acne,
and to her I beware,
our stare,
brought true love to the Sheriff of me!
"Call me anytime, just you, after you remove my dead brother's name from the registry of'course."
She winked and hid her chin,
and said to me again,
"Happy tuh to do that f- f- or, .... you! muh numma is ni-wuh-fi. fo-fi-fo-fo"
I tap-danced out of that store a freeman. But wait, just as I walk off the property, who did I seepark in the handicrap spot of RadioShack none-other than... Geek Squad.
Im going to talk with them too, unfinished business. ....to becontinued.
Killed by Stupid by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 05:18 · Score: 0

Got any mixer IC's?
No.
How about 555s?
No.
Any HAM kits?
No.
Why are you called Radio Shack again?
Should have listened to me by slapout · 2017-03-08 09:17 · Score: 1

I told them this would happen when they stopped publishing their catalog.

--
Coder's Stone: The programming language quick ref for iPad
Re:Upsell Downside Circuit city by Anonymous Coward · 2017-03-08 15:30 · Score: 0

Same thing that killed Circuit city btw, pushy salesmen no one wanted to deal with. My nephew worked at one, and the had a whole wall organized neatly by subject and alphabetized so it was easy to find things. A Corporate guy came and said "you have to mix that stuff up so it's hard to find things so they have to ask you for help." THus getting a chance to upsell. How retarded is that?