pauls_workshop
Well-known member
Umm, actually you are BOTH dating yourselves here! But the 867-5309 is REALLY dating himself. I Got It. I Got It. Heh heh.
Radio Shack reportedly preparing to shut down.
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Umm, actually you are BOTH dating yourselves here! But the 867-5309 is REALLY dating himself. I Got It. I Got It. Heh heh.
pauls_workshop
Well-known member
I'll miss having them exist too, even though haven't been in one in probably a year now. It is a loss, almost like a death of a colleague or friend. Yet another formerly great US company that will be gone. Will the replacements taking their space be better? Well, maybe, or maybe not. I'll miss being able to get something electronical local when I need something. There really isn't anything else where I am at to fill that local space. - Paul
Richard Cranium
Well-known member
I went by one of our local two, was told by a long time employee, that they had not been given a date, but the whole company was going to do a inventory on the 21st of feb. and he figures it will not be long after that. I asked about the bins and he told me he didn't know what they would go for but no one else had inquired about them and he took my name and number... If they are too high I can always say sorry... ****
Thanks for this info. I'll head to my local store (if I can) and see what opportunities present themselves.
ishiboo
Well-known member
Why not just say no?
They use that information primarily to determine whether they should build additional stores in areas. For example, if a lot of people are driving one city over to visit a store, that's additional knowledge in the question of whether or not they should expand there.
So every time you do that, you're simply hurting your chances of getting that store
Walked into my local Radio Shack this afternoon and they had a 25% clearance sale. I asked the person at the counter if they were closing the store. He said he had no clue and the management had not said anything to him. While we were talking, UPS delivers a package. Inside was a big "Store Closing" banner. I guess the employee and I found out at the same time.
timmyisme22
Well-known member
The ones in my city are all non-clearance stores until further notice. It's annoying.
I just never bothered shopping there for years because it was overpriced junk. High-end costs drive me away when I can wait a day or two, get rush shipping, and still pay less for more items of higher quality. It's just sad.
I just never bothered shopping there for years because it was overpriced junk. High-end costs drive me away when I can wait a day or two, get rush shipping, and still pay less for more items of higher quality. It's just sad.
Uncle_Charlie
Well-known member
I talked to the sales clerk at the local RS store yesterday. He indicated that the stores selected for closing are all owned by Radio Shack. However, the local stores here all franchises. Their future appears to be up in the air. He also mentioned that their weekly delivery of stock from RS headquarters hasn't been complete since Christmas. The store appeared to be generally well stocked, no sign of intention to close.
gm54210
Well-known member
Timpala
Well-known member
I can easily say that I wouldn't be in the position or business that I'm in today without Tandy Radio Shack.
I started there 3/11/81 as a Computer Marketing Representative at one of the nation's first Radio Shack Computer Centers. Internally they were known as an "11" store, regular stores are "01" stores and later small computer centers within a regular store were known as an "18".
I learned everything I could about micro-computers, how to sell them and how to program them, and with a stint in the service department how to repair them.
RS was the absolute leader in the space but they dropped the ball. There would have been little room for the IBM PC or Apple ][ if the TRS-80 had been played correctly. We were threatened with termination if we had a copy of the hobbyist magazine 80Micro in the store! That iron grip choked out the innovation and passion that our customers had for the TRS-80 and they moved on to more open platforms.
I guess I just comment to reminisce and give RS a few props for what they could have been.
As far as the name and address thing goes. The Postmaster General gave RS an award for adopting ZIP+4 when it was introduced. RS maintained the largest mailing list in the world in their day. They were one of the first to switch to high speed laser printing on the catalogs and flyers. If you didn't want to give it out we would just write you up as CASH. Our District Manager would check tickets and gripe at the store manager if there were too many CASH tickets though.
I started there 3/11/81 as a Computer Marketing Representative at one of the nation's first Radio Shack Computer Centers. Internally they were known as an "11" store, regular stores are "01" stores and later small computer centers within a regular store were known as an "18".
I learned everything I could about micro-computers, how to sell them and how to program them, and with a stint in the service department how to repair them.
RS was the absolute leader in the space but they dropped the ball. There would have been little room for the IBM PC or Apple ][ if the TRS-80 had been played correctly. We were threatened with termination if we had a copy of the hobbyist magazine 80Micro in the store! That iron grip choked out the innovation and passion that our customers had for the TRS-80 and they moved on to more open platforms.
I guess I just comment to reminisce and give RS a few props for what they could have been.
As far as the name and address thing goes. The Postmaster General gave RS an award for adopting ZIP+4 when it was introduced. RS maintained the largest mailing list in the world in their day. They were one of the first to switch to high speed laser printing on the catalogs and flyers. If you didn't want to give it out we would just write you up as CASH. Our District Manager would check tickets and gripe at the store manager if there were too many CASH tickets though.
Timpala: your TRS-80 comments brings back fond memories as that was my first work provided "laptop" in the mid-'80's. We actually only needed them for one task... aiming Personal Earth Station satellite dishes. They were loaded with a program that would take the local longitude and latitude, and convert that into specific elevation/azimuth settings for aiming the dish.
Yeah, shame to see them go down.
Yeah, shame to see them go down.
I went to a second store, looks like business as usually. No Sales, No Banners, No Discounts. Everything full retail prices. I guess the two stores I went to aren't company owned stores.
They did have two nice Digital Welding Stations, at full retail. I might jump on one of those if they cut the price way down.
They did have two nice Digital Welding Stations, at full retail. I might jump on one of those if they cut the price way down.
byoungblood
Well-known member
Apparently the reason why some stores have closed suddenly has to do with the arrangement RS had with their primary creditor. They were only allowed to close 200 stores per fiscal year without getting approval from the creditor, and apparently their new fiscal year began Feb 1. My guess is that everything will probably remain as-is until they hash out what stores Sprint will buy out and which ones will be sold outright.
It looks like they have already contracted a liquidator to sell off inventory at the stores that will close, which is bad news. Usually these liquidation companies tend to mark prices above normal retail and then "discount" the price back to retail, it probably isn't until a week or so has gone by that anything is a deal, and by that time, most anything worth having is gone after the people who think "its a liquidation sale, it must be a great deal!" have cleaned out the stores.
It looks like they have already contracted a liquidator to sell off inventory at the stores that will close, which is bad news. Usually these liquidation companies tend to mark prices above normal retail and then "discount" the price back to retail, it probably isn't until a week or so has gone by that anything is a deal, and by that time, most anything worth having is gone after the people who think "its a liquidation sale, it must be a great deal!" have cleaned out the stores.
fm2176
Well-known member
That must have been the case with Circuit City a few years ago. I recall stopping by a couple of stores in hopes of scoring a great deal, only to find prices barely below retail. Other customers were gobbling up the "savings", though.
PeterT
Well-known member
Nothing but chinese made junk anyways, I have little interest in their garbage.
bubinga
Well-known member
Damn it, best place to get pots and switches
Work boxes, locally.
They were OK for that kind of stuff.
I better go get a few more pots and switches.
Work boxes, locally.
They were OK for that kind of stuff.
I better go get a few more pots and switches.
BearsFan315
Well-known member
Yeah, read about it in the paper this morning...
Filed for Chapter 11, has about 4000 stores will sell 1500-2400 stores to General Wireless. think the internet and technology for all of this. no one, well most no one builds stuf from scratch when you can buy new CHEAP. I bought tons of pieces and components from them over the years to BUILD electronic gadgets.
Filed for Chapter 11, has about 4000 stores will sell 1500-2400 stores to General Wireless. think the internet and technology for all of this. no one, well most no one builds stuf from scratch when you can buy new CHEAP. I bought tons of pieces and components from them over the years to BUILD electronic gadgets.
byoungblood
Well-known member
I'm mainly interested in components, project boxes, Arduino kits, etc. I too couldn't care less on the rest of the stuff they sell anymore.
They published the closing list this morning, the two locations closest to me are actually staying open, but almost every other location around Memphis is getting shut down.
Looks like they're also getting rid of almost all of the mall stores. No real surprise there, rents are high and traffic at most traditional malls is down. I was quite surprised one of the stores I used to work at back in the late 90s was still open. Traffic at that mall had been down for the better part of a decade.
Cato
Well-known member
I blame the internet. RS's customers are tech savy and unlikely to visit a brick and mortor when they can get stuff online. There just aren't enough old fogies out there getting their cell phones and hearing aid batteries to keep the store going.
Alright I visited mine today. They got their signage on thursday. The employees had no idea it was coming and were under the impression they were staying open.
The shelves were pretty bare except for RS branded merchandise. The employee said they had to box and send back anything that was name brand.
I ended up with an 8oz spool of 60/40 for $10, desoldering wick for $3 and 3 packages of elwire with inverter for $6each. Nothing spectacular by any means. People were going ape **** of cheesy chinese phone **** though.
They also said they were keeping the fixtures but Ill try back in another few days. The employee said they were staying open through May and I laughed a little inside. The shelves will be bare by next week and he thinks they are going to be open for another 3 months.
I priced out what was left of the arduino stuff and its no wonder they are shutting down. The same relay boards that you can buy anywhere for <$5 they had marked at $30.
The shelves were pretty bare except for RS branded merchandise. The employee said they had to box and send back anything that was name brand.
I ended up with an 8oz spool of 60/40 for $10, desoldering wick for $3 and 3 packages of elwire with inverter for $6each. Nothing spectacular by any means. People were going ape **** of cheesy chinese phone **** though.
They also said they were keeping the fixtures but Ill try back in another few days. The employee said they were staying open through May and I laughed a little inside. The shelves will be bare by next week and he thinks they are going to be open for another 3 months.
I priced out what was left of the arduino stuff and its no wonder they are shutting down. The same relay boards that you can buy anywhere for <$5 they had marked at $30.
Malczewski
Banned
Therein lies the problem.
Clueless idjits.
mmack66
Well-known member
At least they didn't drag it out like Sears is doing.
elronin
Well-known member
In all, the company plans to close at least 1,784 stores by March 31, with the closures coming in three waves, or tranches.
The first tranche of closures includes 162 stores and is set to be complete by February 17.
The second tranche includes 986 stores set to be closed by February 28.
And the third tranche includes 636 stores slated to be closed by March 31.
We shall see.justin1795
Well-known member
I don't like to see any store go under but im surprised it took this long. I haven't been there since I was a kid and bought a rc car. I went there about a year ago to get a rf choke to fix my dog fence. I wasent sure what I was looking for but neither was the kid. he finally said he didn't have it. I went threw all the drawers and found it. I don't know what the soulution would have been to fix that store but they just seem like the are scattered into to many places and they have always been the higher priced store in comparison. im sure if they could have got some big hit product it might have saved them but these ceo's and cooperate boards have no ideal what the middle class needs or can afford.
I don't even remember the last time I went into a brick and mortar store to buy a cellphone. Years ago (before the iPhone), I would go into the store to look at all the brands and models, and buy one there. But the last 5 years or so, when I need a new phone, I just log into my account, select the phone I want, and have it shipped to my house in 1-2 days.
At this point the only real "decision" for most people is iPhone or Samsung Galaxy, then what color, and how many GB, that's it. Why go into a store for that. I don't see how this "store within a store" is going to work, why would Sprint need thousands of these stores. Sprint is going to go out of business if they lease the thousands of RadioShack stores that also couldn't turn a profit selling cellphones. What would Sprint be able to do different in these stores?
At this point the only real "decision" for most people is iPhone or Samsung Galaxy, then what color, and how many GB, that's it. Why go into a store for that. I don't see how this "store within a store" is going to work, why would Sprint need thousands of these stores. Sprint is going to go out of business if they lease the thousands of RadioShack stores that also couldn't turn a profit selling cellphones. What would Sprint be able to do different in these stores?
mmack66
Well-known member
Sprint is setting up shop in the remaining Radio Shack stores, not the ones that are being closed. It's cheaper than opening a regular Sprint store.
Richard Cranium
Well-known member
So what is the going price on the parts boxes? Anyone hear any price at all?
timmyisme22
Well-known member
Not selling in our fair city. All franchises here
*EDIT*
I take that back! According to the list on the other thread, Union Gap's mall Radio Shack should be closing. I'll check it out again tomorrow and hope I don't get a flat "we're not closing" answer. They didn't have a single thing on clearance last week.
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rob1200
Well-known member
Take a look at this thread:
Radio Shack cabinets
One person bought eight 7-drawer units for $50 total.
tomahawk_25
Well-known member
I stopped into one by me today, and I just about feel over when they told me how much they thought they going for.....300.00 for a 7 drawer section, they said they weren't 100% sure, but that's what they had heard, so I gave them my number and said when they have a solid figure to call me.
Sadly I think this is close. I've been to two (with those cabinets being one of my main interests) and one didn't know and the other had a big fixture that was basically 4 banks of drawers built into two desks and they wanted $1,900 for it, which made my jaw drop. I was hoping for <$50 per bank but now I am not so optimistic.
Ilikeike
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I went by my local shack a few blocks from my house this Saturday. They're already closed and the store is empty.
It came in handy a few times. I'll miss it
It came in handy a few times. I'll miss it
bfm336
Well-known member
I also was quoted $300 per drawer set.
elronin
Well-known member
I walked in one of my local stores today they won't start the clearance until next week and that will start at 25% off. I looked at the drawer banks but at 300 dollars they are nuts. I can't see them even go for 50 they aren't that we'll made in the first place.
QtrHorse13
Well-known member
The two stores I visited today had each 7 drawer cabinet at $300 each. I had at first thought they meant 7 total cabinets for $300 and I was quickly corrected.
Honestly after looking at them closely today, I'm not even sure they are worth $50 each. They are quite flimsy, you can only use those plastic parts bins that come with them because each drawer is open from the bottom and the drawers didn't really close/ stay closed all that well.
Honestly after looking at them closely today, I'm not even sure they are worth $50 each. They are quite flimsy, you can only use those plastic parts bins that come with them because each drawer is open from the bottom and the drawers didn't really close/ stay closed all that well.
Radio Shack made local TV news tonight saying they are undergoing Chapter 11 bankruptcy . . . . and 6 of 9 local stores will be closing. 
However, with crisis there is opportunity so I'll be scouting those 6 stores for potential scores on storage !!
However, with crisis there is opportunity so I'll be scouting those 6 stores for potential scores on storage !!
QtrHorse13
Well-known member
Not for me locally. We have 4 electronics stores that carry a much larger variety than Radio Shack ever has and cheaper with people that actually know how to use the items that are sold there. I did pick up $30 worth of small electronics parts that were 60% off today from RS.