If there isn't a market for retailers, why does Apple sell products through retail outlets?
If RS employees knew Parallax products as well as the chains know Apple products, we wouldn't be having this discussion.
Totally different products. The apple products have a very high margin and there are very few products to stock.
Fewer products makes it easier to have knowledgeable sales staff; computers and phones are familiar items to most people, so "what's a diode" doesn't happen.
I know a lot of folks, me included, find it easy to run to "the shack" to grab a resistor, capacitor, etc., but it's almost always a compromise because too few values are stocked.
I just don't see how a conventional brick and mortar store can stock the variety of items needed and turn enough inventory to make it work.
RS employees working the "RS DIY" department should have a good basic understanding of Parallax, Ardunio, PIC, etc. A basic understanding of electronics which goes at least a bit further than what a diode is. If you are selling a product that you have no understanding of, then something is seriously wrong.
The problem is that if they have that level of understanding they are not going to be happy pushing cell phones and cell phone accessories.
That's why I mentioned having some type of kiosk in a similar thread a while back.
You would be able to do a live video chat with someone with the proper knowledge.
RS employees working the "RS DIY" department should have a good basic understanding of Parallax, Ardunio, PIC, etc. A basic understanding of electronics which goes at least a bit further than what a diode is. If you are selling a product that you have no understanding of, then something is seriously wrong.
Would you and the public be willing to pay more to have qualified staff fully knowledgable of electronics?
I think there is the rub...Americans love their bargain prices...even in Radio Shack.
I'd say do what the office supply and FedEx/UPS stores are doing by adding copy/print services. Or what Costco has done with photo printing and enlarging. Except for RS, it would be 3D-print and laser-cut services (routers being too noisy for most retail locations). Who else does that? Around here, nobody. Is there enough demand for that sort of thing? Maybe not in my little burg, judging from the few who come to me for laser cutting. But in a bigger city, I'll bet the extra business could help sustain them.
And make it fun. Set up big screens in the store with TV cameras monitoring the cutting and fabrication operations. When I was a kid, there was a hole-in-the-wall donut shop behind the barbershop I went to that had their donut-making machine on the front counter. Everyone could watch the donut dough being extruded into the hot oil, then automatically flipped over, and finally dispensed onto a ramp, from which they were taken and iced. The sold a ton of greasy donuts just because the machine was such a huge draw. I think the same sort of thing could draw customers to RS.
It will be a big trend that the offline shop need offer more than just offer sell things.
I think they still have chance to win the future, if the company can rebuild the business module.
How about a kind of open space for the customers who are interested in electronics and hi-tech staffs?
The customers can working together, share the idea each other, organize the event and enjoy the open-tools, spaces of the store.
Just like Starbucks Cafe Shop, a third space for the people who like electronics, like hi-tech staffs?
If I were the CEO I would do what they are currently doing, which is to reduce inventory by getting rid of the products that aren't producing revenue, and just taking up space. In addition, I would shut down the less productive stores. I would also enhance the online store, and implement a deliver-to store option which would have zero shipping cost to the customer. Walmart and some other retail stores have this feature where certain items are only available online, but they get delivered to your nearest store where you pick them up. This provides zero shipping cost to the customer, and it gets the customer into your brick-and-mortar store for pickup. While they are there to pick up their online purchase they may purchase other things like batteries or even get enticed into switching their cellphone plan.
"And make it fun. Set up big screens in the store with TV cameras monitoring the cutting and fabrication operations." - Then It might bring RS back into selling TV's and Video Cameras .... I think that era was better than the cell phone phenomenon. At least then you could bring in your broken electronics, and in some cases it could at least be repaired right there at the RS or it could be sent off. I think at one time they even offered to 'FIX' broken electronics that were not even sold in RS.
And what ever happened to the battery cards? I kinda liked that.... yes they were cheap batteries, but perfect for many things.
Back in the 80s/early 90s (pre-internet) Radio Shack was a reasonable choice as a place to buy electronic parts and the prices weren't bad all things considered. The mail order alternative was much, much slower. You were lucky to get your parts in less than two or three weeks.
You either made an expensive long distance phone call (remember that?) or mailed your order in, then waited. Also, many of the larger distributors had hefty minimum order requirements or wouldn't sell to individuals at all.
Today, I can place an online order for just about anything in any quantity and get my stuff in two to three days with normal cheap shipping. Radio Shack is no longer an option.
Radio Shack did some dumb things after the internet and cell phones began to take off. Seeing more and more of their stores start to appear in malls always seemed odd to me. It didn't seem like they really belonged there. I think there still is a market for some kind of hobby/DIY level electronics/RC models/computer type store, sort of a cross between old school hobby shops, the best parts of the old Radio Shack, with some computer stuff thrown in. But I don't think there is need for a lot of them. You certainly can't expect most of America to be able to support stores on the scale of a Fry's for instance.
I don't know if Radio Shack will survive but I'm pretty sure that if they do, a Radio Shack store of the future won't look much like the ones we have now.
Let it die? It's the only place Joe Average can walk in and buy a resistor in many places.
Of course, I guess just those drawers could survive in a mall cart, kiosk or even a vending machine. That would be better than nothing.
HEY! THERE'S the idea!
In Japan, one can get almost ANYTHING from a vending machine. Not just candy and bizarre soft drinks (bean soda, hot cold coffee and tea of every conceivable combination of milk, sugar, whatnot; yogurt sports drinks, questionable and possible dangerous energy drink, alcohol drinks of every size and strength). Also common are magazines (ALL bizarre types included), rice by the kilo, panty hose, fresh cut flowers, the list goes on and on. I kid you not. These line every major through fare in Tokyo, and most of the minor ones too. AND they all get continuous business (apparently).
WHY NOT self service vending machine for common electronic parts? They wouldn't need to line the streets, just one outside for example the grocery store or perhaps just one per town? Since they can be networked, folks could special order parts, and the truck deliver them to a specific machine for next restock.
It's the only place Joe Average can walk in and buy a resistor in many places.
The number of people that actually do this is probably not enough to keep one single store in business. Having an entire chain of retail stores (or even vending machines) just to accommodate the few people that need a hand full of last minute parts is pretty ridiculous. It's just not going to work.
Besides, I think the vending machine idea is already taken.
Having an entire chain of retail stores (or even vending machines) just to accommodate the few people that need a hand full of last minute parts is pretty ridiculous. It's just not going to work.
You're probably right. Even soft drink machines probably won't be successful either, since anyone can just got to the grocery store and get them for less, or got to a convenience store or gas station and get them for only double or triple the grocery store price. I feel sorry for all the software drink vending machine owners, constantly putting out more machines, even though they are obviously doomed.
Add 24 hour turnaround dry cleaning and a Fed-Ex shipping and packaging service. That would pay the rent, then they could just dust the inventory all day.
I guess it depends on the presentation and circumstance.... For example: If the neighborhood I live in is having a garage sale, we buy coke in bulk, but in flavors that we would normally consume anyway, and sell it ice cold curbside as people are wandering the neighborhood for $1 a can. At the end of the day we have a net gain on our coke investment.
So to apply this to a business model, we effectively need a neighborhood garage sale that offers a desirable service that generates a net gain to the company while still maintaining the interest at the customer level. :-)
The parts vending machine is pretty cool idea, less people poking and moving bags back to wrong bin.
If RS is gone, were would this vending apparatus be located? at Ace or True hardware stores would be OK with me.
Probably be a breakeven business at best, but is a good way to get a little extra foot traffic to store.
The parts vending machine is pretty cool idea, less people poking and moving bags back to wrong bin.
If RS is gone, were would this vending apparatus be located? at Ace or True hardware stores would be OK with me.
Probably be a breakeven business at best, but is a good way to get a little extra foot traffic to store.
Libraries are looking for a way to stay relevant no that paper books are on the decline. There appears to be a trend of libraries trying to open "MakerSpaces" or "HackerSpaces".
I suggest that electronic parts vending machine would do well in the lobby of such a library. I further suggest that the parts bin at Sector 67 in Wisconsin might give insight on how well this might work (or not) since they have been doing this for some time and may have data or suggestions.
@RDL2004: You really would be amazed by vending machines in Japan. They are successfully applied to so much more than drinks. This is everyday stuff over there, even though its a completely alien concept here.
Add 24 hour turnaround dry cleaning and a Fed-Ex shipping and packaging service. That would pay the rent, then they could just dust the inventory all day.
Capital idea! Unless the Shack CEO alternatively selects services like overnight film developing, VHS, Beta & laserdisc rental, PAL tv repair, and free vacuum tube testing.
Strike that last entry. My favorite local shop, Torrance Electronics, has an amazing inventory of new parts, dusty old treasures, and a working vacuum tube tester. The last bastion of retro DIY for old fogies like me, tasked with maintaining my gracefully-aging trove of Heathkit ham radios, Victrolas, Predictas, and a 1910 player piano.
Those drug-store tube testers helped to cement my status as a family co-provider back in the '60s, due to the money it saved my folks from TV-repair bills!
The crux of the problem is simply that inventory management has to work in tandem with education.
The original approach was kits as in Heathkits. These worked because one was actually buying a wanted target device for less than the assembled cost from other sources and gained a bonus of knowledge along the way.
So where is the 'knowledge bonus' is buying from Radio Shack? That seems to have never gotten clearly on their radar, though the Forest Mims texts did work in that way.
Similarly, Parallax needs to consider if it is fading away from the 'knowledge bonus' as it seems that the industry is trending away from providing this element. It takes thought and writers, likely paid writers that can be asked to revise material until it really is substantially above the drivel written by the crowd.
If you want to run a store that your franchise bosses do the heavy thinking, you should buy into a 7-11 or Ace Hardware. They know their market niche and how to provide for their outlets.
In truth, the whole business model of electronics components has been a better fit of buying from catalog via mail-order or internet order. Stocking physical inventory for a walk-in customer is next to impossible. Educating the somewhat curious noob is even a bigger challenge. Paying the overhead becomes next to impossible.
In bigger cities, there will always be some independent and savy retailers that can provide electronics components and make ends meet. But this is not main stream mass marketing and not likely to ever become such. There have been just too many rapid fire changes in format and size to be able to safely stock shelves with inventory that retains value while it is sitting and waiting for a purchase.
You're probably right. Even soft drink machines probably won't be successful either, since anyone can just got to the grocery store and get them for less, or got to a convenience store or gas station and get them for only double or triple the grocery store price. I feel sorry for all the software drink vending machine owners, constantly putting out more machines, even though they are obviously doomed.
The problem is that probably 75% of the population drinks soda. But only 1% know anything about electronics, and that number has been falling over the years.
If Radio Shack wants to continue to sell electronic parts, they need to get people interested. Not just kids, but middle aged and older people as well. They need to have demonstrations setup in the stores and maybe even outside the stores to get people interested. I remember when RS was big into remote control cars and they would have the employees running them all over the store. They need to do the same thing with electronics.
Scale back the emphasis on cellphones. Don't get rid of it tho', every time I go to one of the stores there's always someone there with a cellphone issue.
That is exactly why they should get out of the cellphone business. The employees are tied up with cellphone problems and would not have time to assist people with electronics questions. They are dozens of places that sell cellphones but very few that sell electronic parts.
I mean if they HAVE to sell cellphones to keep the doors open, then so be it. But I don't like it...
Gawd.. I have to wonder if the CEO of Radio Shack might be following this thread. I feel a bit sorry for the poor soul.
Loopy, I wouldn't feel too sorry for the CEO.
At RadioShack, Magnacca will receive a $1 million signing bonus, to be paid within 15 days of his start date, a base salary of $1 million and stock options, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. He can also earn a $1.2 million bonus this year if he achieves certain performance metrics, the filing states.
- RadioShack counting on new CEO to provide 'fresh start', Star-Telegram, February 8, 2013
Those drug-store tube testers helped to cement my status as a family co-provider back in the '60s, due to the money it saved my folks from TV-repair bills!
-Phil
Yes, "but" your sense of humor may have been improved by watching the fat repairman from behind. LOL ... we always had a good giggle in our house.
Hello!
Let's just say that the Samurai communities of Japan invented it, and it typically happened when one of them fouled up something horrible, and they needed to do that to restore their benighted and even besmirched honor, and it involved one of their two swords.
Failing that, post notices in the New York Times and in all other papers that starting on such-and-such dates the company will no longer sell cell phones, they will support the ones they foolishly sold, but no new ones will be sold.
Then they'll stop selling certain brands of computers.
They will however expand the DIY space. And while they are it invite the Maker Shed community in to support them further, followed of course by Parallax.
Here we have Microcenter who expanded to fill the space that Fry's never moved into, they sell practically everything, and no cell phones in sight.Their technological book space rivals the ones found keeping B&N in business as it happens.
Also they have excellent service and support. and even wonderful and properly laid out use of space. Their DIY space is even expanding. It will probably take over the space wasted on the gaming market very soon.
Ken they fully understand and appreciate Parallax. RS does not.........
Re: Re: If you were the CEO of Radio Shack, what would you do?
The first thing I would do would be to stop selling junk. That would eliminate about 70% of the RS labeled products. To make a profit I would change the name to S?X Shack and sell Se? related products.
Comments
In it's current incarnation I would say yes, but remember I said let something rise from the ashes.
I think it's going to take a startup, something new, to make it in the future.
But the markup on those small components can't pay the rent, staff, and utilities that it takes to keep the store open.
Totally different products. The apple products have a very high margin and there are very few products to stock.
Fewer products makes it easier to have knowledgeable sales staff; computers and phones are familiar items to most people, so "what's a diode" doesn't happen.
I know a lot of folks, me included, find it easy to run to "the shack" to grab a resistor, capacitor, etc., but it's almost always a compromise because too few values are stocked.
I just don't see how a conventional brick and mortar store can stock the variety of items needed and turn enough inventory to make it work.
C.W.
The problem is that if they have that level of understanding they are not going to be happy pushing cell phones and cell phone accessories.
That's why I mentioned having some type of kiosk in a similar thread a while back.
You would be able to do a live video chat with someone with the proper knowledge.
C.W.
Would you and the public be willing to pay more to have qualified staff fully knowledgable of electronics?
I think there is the rub...Americans love their bargain prices...even in Radio Shack.
And make it fun. Set up big screens in the store with TV cameras monitoring the cutting and fabrication operations. When I was a kid, there was a hole-in-the-wall donut shop behind the barbershop I went to that had their donut-making machine on the front counter. Everyone could watch the donut dough being extruded into the hot oil, then automatically flipped over, and finally dispensed onto a ramp, from which they were taken and iced. The sold a ton of greasy donuts just because the machine was such a huge draw. I think the same sort of thing could draw customers to RS.
-Phil
I think they still have chance to win the future, if the company can rebuild the business module.
How about a kind of open space for the customers who are interested in electronics and hi-tech staffs?
The customers can working together, share the idea each other, organize the event and enjoy the open-tools, spaces of the store.
Just like Starbucks Cafe Shop, a third space for the people who like electronics, like hi-tech staffs?
And what ever happened to the battery cards? I kinda liked that.... yes they were cheap batteries, but perfect for many things.
You either made an expensive long distance phone call (remember that?) or mailed your order in, then waited. Also, many of the larger distributors had hefty minimum order requirements or wouldn't sell to individuals at all.
Today, I can place an online order for just about anything in any quantity and get my stuff in two to three days with normal cheap shipping. Radio Shack is no longer an option.
Radio Shack did some dumb things after the internet and cell phones began to take off. Seeing more and more of their stores start to appear in malls always seemed odd to me. It didn't seem like they really belonged there. I think there still is a market for some kind of hobby/DIY level electronics/RC models/computer type store, sort of a cross between old school hobby shops, the best parts of the old Radio Shack, with some computer stuff thrown in. But I don't think there is need for a lot of them. You certainly can't expect most of America to be able to support stores on the scale of a Fry's for instance.
I don't know if Radio Shack will survive but I'm pretty sure that if they do, a Radio Shack store of the future won't look much like the ones we have now.
HEY! THERE'S the idea!
In Japan, one can get almost ANYTHING from a vending machine. Not just candy and bizarre soft drinks (bean soda, hot cold coffee and tea of every conceivable combination of milk, sugar, whatnot; yogurt sports drinks, questionable and possible dangerous energy drink, alcohol drinks of every size and strength). Also common are magazines (ALL bizarre types included), rice by the kilo, panty hose, fresh cut flowers, the list goes on and on. I kid you not. These line every major through fare in Tokyo, and most of the minor ones too. AND they all get continuous business (apparently).
WHY NOT self service vending machine for common electronic parts? They wouldn't need to line the streets, just one outside for example the grocery store or perhaps just one per town? Since they can be networked, folks could special order parts, and the truck deliver them to a specific machine for next restock.
Let's make a kick starter!
The number of people that actually do this is probably not enough to keep one single store in business. Having an entire chain of retail stores (or even vending machines) just to accommodate the few people that need a hand full of last minute parts is pretty ridiculous. It's just not going to work.
Besides, I think the vending machine idea is already taken.
You're probably right. Even soft drink machines probably won't be successful either, since anyone can just got to the grocery store and get them for less, or got to a convenience store or gas station and get them for only double or triple the grocery store price. I feel sorry for all the software drink vending machine owners, constantly putting out more machines, even though they are obviously doomed.
Comparing soft drinks and electronic parts is pretty far out there. At least apples and oranges are somewhat similar.
Pepsico and Coca-Cola had sales over $100 billion in 2012, Radio Shack about $1.3 billion.
How much of that $1.3 B was from parts? I don't know, but my guess is "not much".
So to apply this to a business model, we effectively need a neighborhood garage sale that offers a desirable service that generates a net gain to the company while still maintaining the interest at the customer level. :-)
If RS is gone, were would this vending apparatus be located? at Ace or True hardware stores would be OK with me.
Probably be a breakeven business at best, but is a good way to get a little extra foot traffic to store.
Libraries are looking for a way to stay relevant no that paper books are on the decline. There appears to be a trend of libraries trying to open "MakerSpaces" or "HackerSpaces".
I suggest that electronic parts vending machine would do well in the lobby of such a library. I further suggest that the parts bin at Sector 67 in Wisconsin might give insight on how well this might work (or not) since they have been doing this for some time and may have data or suggestions.
@RDL2004: You really would be amazed by vending machines in Japan. They are successfully applied to so much more than drinks. This is everyday stuff over there, even though its a completely alien concept here.
I can't imagine electronic parts vending machines ever being able to pay for the electricity they use, much less the cost of building them.
Capital idea! Unless the Shack CEO alternatively selects services like overnight film developing, VHS, Beta & laserdisc rental, PAL tv repair, and free vacuum tube testing.
Strike that last entry. My favorite local shop, Torrance Electronics, has an amazing inventory of new parts, dusty old treasures, and a working vacuum tube tester. The last bastion of retro DIY for old fogies like me, tasked with maintaining my gracefully-aging trove of Heathkit ham radios, Victrolas, Predictas, and a 1910 player piano.
-Phil
The original approach was kits as in Heathkits. These worked because one was actually buying a wanted target device for less than the assembled cost from other sources and gained a bonus of knowledge along the way.
So where is the 'knowledge bonus' is buying from Radio Shack? That seems to have never gotten clearly on their radar, though the Forest Mims texts did work in that way.
Similarly, Parallax needs to consider if it is fading away from the 'knowledge bonus' as it seems that the industry is trending away from providing this element. It takes thought and writers, likely paid writers that can be asked to revise material until it really is substantially above the drivel written by the crowd.
If you want to run a store that your franchise bosses do the heavy thinking, you should buy into a 7-11 or Ace Hardware. They know their market niche and how to provide for their outlets.
In truth, the whole business model of electronics components has been a better fit of buying from catalog via mail-order or internet order. Stocking physical inventory for a walk-in customer is next to impossible. Educating the somewhat curious noob is even a bigger challenge. Paying the overhead becomes next to impossible.
In bigger cities, there will always be some independent and savy retailers that can provide electronics components and make ends meet. But this is not main stream mass marketing and not likely to ever become such. There have been just too many rapid fire changes in format and size to be able to safely stock shelves with inventory that retains value while it is sitting and waiting for a purchase.
The problem is that probably 75% of the population drinks soda. But only 1% know anything about electronics, and that number has been falling over the years.
If Radio Shack wants to continue to sell electronic parts, they need to get people interested. Not just kids, but middle aged and older people as well. They need to have demonstrations setup in the stores and maybe even outside the stores to get people interested. I remember when RS was big into remote control cars and they would have the employees running them all over the store. They need to do the same thing with electronics.
Bean
That is exactly why they should get out of the cellphone business. The employees are tied up with cellphone problems and would not have time to assist people with electronics questions. They are dozens of places that sell cellphones but very few that sell electronic parts.
I mean if they HAVE to sell cellphones to keep the doors open, then so be it. But I don't like it...
Bean
Yes, "but" your sense of humor may have been improved by watching the fat repairman from behind. LOL ... we always had a good giggle in our house.
Eventually we bought our own tube tester.
Ah, so that's where you got yours.
I was wondering.
Let's just say that the Samurai communities of Japan invented it, and it typically happened when one of them fouled up something horrible, and they needed to do that to restore their benighted and even besmirched honor, and it involved one of their two swords.
Failing that, post notices in the New York Times and in all other papers that starting on such-and-such dates the company will no longer sell cell phones, they will support the ones they foolishly sold, but no new ones will be sold.
Then they'll stop selling certain brands of computers.
They will however expand the DIY space. And while they are it invite the Maker Shed community in to support them further, followed of course by Parallax.
Here we have Microcenter who expanded to fill the space that Fry's never moved into, they sell practically everything, and no cell phones in sight.Their technological book space rivals the ones found keeping B&N in business as it happens.
Also they have excellent service and support. and even wonderful and properly laid out use of space. Their DIY space is even expanding. It will probably take over the space wasted on the gaming market very soon.
Ken they fully understand and appreciate Parallax. RS does not.........
The first thing I would do would be to stop selling junk. That would eliminate about 70% of the RS labeled products. To make a profit I would change the name to S?X Shack and sell Se? related products.