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