Gotta give it up for Radio Shack!!! If nothing else, it is the quintessential equivalent of the geeks political virtual water cooler conversation starter!!
A quick breeze through my local mall Radio Shack looks like they are banking heavily on Little Bits this holiday season. Huge lower wall display of LB, but no Parallax stuff to be seen.
I don't know what that corp-speak video is all about, but the actual spot he did is far, far better. And unlike their bomb of a Superbowl ad, this one could actually bring some customs into the stores. Weird Al, at his best.
Bummer dude. The Shack is forcing you to stay home with family and socialize and eat turkey for five hours!
Or go to Best Buy.
Are we sure this thread isn't a quiet redirect to www.theonion.com? While reading the story this statement caught my attention:
"Given the customer demand for store hours on Thanksgiving last year, we made the decision to open on Thanksgiving," she said. "It gives us the opportunity to stay competitive."
It almost sounds as if they're trying to create a market rather than respond to one. But hey, depending on who's at your house on Thanksgiving it could be a great opportunity to get away from whatever discussion is going on at the table!
RadioShack Kept Alive by $25 Billion of Swaps Side Bets
RadioShack Corp. (RSH) is finding an unlikely ally in its efforts to stay out of bankruptcy: credit derivatives traders who amassed more than $25 billion of trades speculating how much longer it can keep paying its bills.
After a 60 percent surge this year, the amount of credit-default swaps tied to RadioShack is 28 times its debt, more than any other U.S. company. When the retailers biggest shareholder arranged $585 million of funding in October to help it survive the holidays, much of the money came from hedge funds wagering on the company to avoid default, said people with knowledge of the trading. Those included DW Investment Management and Saba Capital Management, the people said.
Saw this at a mall Shack while Christmas shopping tonight. Save 50% on drawer components when you buy ten. Could a surge in resistor sales actually save the Shack?
My local RS wouldn't dare run that promotion, since they put the good Parallax stuff in those drawers, too. Buy nine resistor packs a Ping))) and get everyting at half price? I think not.
I don't begin to understand the wheeling and dealing going on here but it seems the end result is that the Shack gets big pile of cash, let's call it investment, without any sign of of a plan as to how to turn that investment into a profit.
I would naively assume that if you are paying the same people in the same stores to try and sell the same stuff in the same way as they have been doing for ages then the result will be the same.
What is going on here?
Now I know that electronics component stores for the hobbyist can thrive. That market is limited. I forget what I calculated last but its was something like 600 stores was enough for all the USA . Provided you staff them with people who know what they are dealing with.
Whatever happened to Allied Radio? They always had more stuff, better prices, and better stuff than Radio Shack. (At least that was how it was back in 1961.)
The current incarnation of Allied Electronics has a web site and catalog that bear little resemblance to its original technology or target market. Their primary business focus today is the industrial components and equipment market, with no retail or mail-order consumer products. Although their product line targets industrial components and equipment, they have an extensive supply of parts, tools, and other items that any experimenter might be interested in. They welcome orders of any size from individuals, either from their online ordering facility, or from their 2,192-page catalog which is both online and available in print for the asking. Company headquarters are located in Fort Worth, Texas.
Interestingly:
In 1999 the company was acquired by Electrocomponents, a British-based distributor of electronics and maintenance products.
Which you might better know as RS Components (The old Radio Spares) or Allied Components in the USA.
Both are now household names as manufacturers and suppliers of the Raspberry Pi.
That cannot be the point. Allied Radio is not an alternative.
Today it's Allied Electronics.The American half of RS. (Formerly Radio Spares)
Every one and his dog knows Allied Electronics today thanks to their supplying well know things like the Raspberry Pi and Red Pitaya,
Normally they would not be my first thought for regular electronic components, chips, MCUs etc as historically their prices were somewhat above the more well known online distributors.
There is a great RS shop here though for when I need some electronics tools, supplies or parts in a hurry.
That's the point. Many people never heard of Allied Radio as an alternative.
Assuming you mean in the past tense, it would all depend if there was an Allied store in the customer's area. Allied, like Lafayette and others like it, had fewer retail stores, and did not compete in the same mindshare as RS did.
There are many videophiles who continue to insist Betamax was better, yet VHS won out. Price and quality often have less to do with the success of a product or company than marketing. During its heyday periods, RS had very good marketing. Even if Allied had better pricing, people go with what they know.
You have to wonder if there's any business for a large corporation in servicing the hobby electronics business. Combine the top 10 Internet destinations for buying electronic goodies, and I bet it would still way too small to fuel RS for even a few months out of the year..
FYI, in 1961 Radio Shack and Allied were both mail order catalog houses for people in San Francisco. The market was electronics repairmen (TV and radio) and ham radio enthusiasts, with just the beginnings of hifi.
About the only retailer was Zacks Electronics on Market Street near Van Ness Avenue, though there was at least one high end audio retailer further up Market Street near the Castro District (name escapes me, but it is still there).
But regarding the point, please consider that even Oblio learned that the Pointless Forest had a point.
I hope we are not confusing RS as in "Radio Shack" in the USA with RS as in "Radio Spares", but now just "RS" in Europe. (Hence RS is Allied in the States, if you see what I mean)
In Helsinki for some decades there was a big electronics retail store that served business, hobbyists, students etc. I could go in there and buy resistor or a reel of SM resistors. As far as I can tell they are now a RS store. At least all their stock and catalog is basically RS stuff. They are not so cheap but great when you want something now!
They have a thriving business going on there.
For this reason I believe Radio Shack stores can still thrive in the USA. Especially now the "Maker movement" is blossoming. But given the relative size of the populations it probably means pruning back to one store per big city, say a 100 nationwide, stocking up on good stuff and manning the stores with people who know what they are selling.
But I'm also guessing Radio Shack does not have the where with all to be that kind of distributor.
Comments
Doc
That pretty much sums up my workweek!!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/12/radioshack-thanksgiving-hours-pushback_n_6147614.html
Bummer dude. The Shack is forcing you to stay home with family and socialize and eat turkey for five hours!
Or go to Best Buy.
Are we sure this thread isn't a quiet redirect to www.theonion.com? While reading the story this statement caught my attention:
"Given the customer demand for store hours on Thanksgiving last year, we made the decision to open on Thanksgiving," she said. "It gives us the opportunity to stay competitive."
It almost sounds as if they're trying to create a market rather than respond to one. But hey, depending on who's at your house on Thanksgiving it could be a great opportunity to get away from whatever discussion is going on at the table!
Ken Gracey
RadioShack Kept Alive by $25 Billion of Swaps Side Bets
-Phil
Thanks erco! Another dollar to the college fund.
I would naively assume that if you are paying the same people in the same stores to try and sell the same stuff in the same way as they have been doing for ages then the result will be the same.
What is going on here?
Now I know that electronics component stores for the hobbyist can thrive. That market is limited. I forget what I calculated last but its was something like 600 stores was enough for all the USA . Provided you staff them with people who know what they are dealing with.
Well if that worked then forget the resistors, just buy 10 Parallax joysticks or sensors at half off!
Run, don't walk, PhiPi. Clean out those Shack drawers, it's Christmas!
They had two Joysticks, ( I had two, now have three), The had one 2-axis accelerometer, ( I have three already ).
No other Parallax products in sight.
--- an anonymous hoarder
http://www.alliedcatalogs.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allied_Radio
The answer to your question is in your own links: Interestingly: Which you might better know as RS Components (The old Radio Spares) or Allied Components in the USA.
Both are now household names as manufacturers and suppliers of the Raspberry Pi.
Things seem to have come full circle there.
That's the point. Many people never heard of Allied Radio as an alternative.
Today it's Allied Electronics.The American half of RS. (Formerly Radio Spares)
Every one and his dog knows Allied Electronics today thanks to their supplying well know things like the Raspberry Pi and Red Pitaya,
Normally they would not be my first thought for regular electronic components, chips, MCUs etc as historically their prices were somewhat above the more well known online distributors.
There is a great RS shop here though for when I need some electronics tools, supplies or parts in a hurry.
Assuming you mean in the past tense, it would all depend if there was an Allied store in the customer's area. Allied, like Lafayette and others like it, had fewer retail stores, and did not compete in the same mindshare as RS did.
There are many videophiles who continue to insist Betamax was better, yet VHS won out. Price and quality often have less to do with the success of a product or company than marketing. During its heyday periods, RS had very good marketing. Even if Allied had better pricing, people go with what they know.
You have to wonder if there's any business for a large corporation in servicing the hobby electronics business. Combine the top 10 Internet destinations for buying electronic goodies, and I bet it would still way too small to fuel RS for even a few months out of the year..
Interesting.
I remember the Allied Electronics component catalogue from long ago, and never think of them in any other way.
FYI, in 1961 Radio Shack and Allied were both mail order catalog houses for people in San Francisco. The market was electronics repairmen (TV and radio) and ham radio enthusiasts, with just the beginnings of hifi.
About the only retailer was Zacks Electronics on Market Street near Van Ness Avenue, though there was at least one high end audio retailer further up Market Street near the Castro District (name escapes me, but it is still there).
But regarding the point, please consider that even Oblio learned that the Pointless Forest had a point.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Point!
In Helsinki for some decades there was a big electronics retail store that served business, hobbyists, students etc. I could go in there and buy resistor or a reel of SM resistors. As far as I can tell they are now a RS store. At least all their stock and catalog is basically RS stuff. They are not so cheap but great when you want something now!
They have a thriving business going on there.
For this reason I believe Radio Shack stores can still thrive in the USA. Especially now the "Maker movement" is blossoming. But given the relative size of the populations it probably means pruning back to one store per big city, say a 100 nationwide, stocking up on good stuff and manning the stores with people who know what they are selling.
But I'm also guessing Radio Shack does not have the where with all to be that kind of distributor.