I was in the Webster location the other day and it's sad, I used to love going there because of the hands on selection they had. Looks like a store in month 2 of a liquidation sale....
I was at Micro Center recently also. The workers there come from largely the same demographic group and fit basically the same physical description that Fry's workers do, but the vibe is totally different. The same goes with the Best Buy around here. Makes a difference when a business isn't doomed, I guess.
They gave me free same day delivery on a $150 pair of headphones a couple of months back. I remember thinking that the offer was pretty ridiculous, my home is pretty damn far from the store in Webster.
This. The competition will be fierce but there will be several that make it to the other side. I think Best Buy is probably the best example so far; they upgraded their inventory management and leveraged their hundreds of locations to provide a great in store pickup system/delivery system and they updated their showrooms to feature more demos and "stores within a store". Wal Mart is following the same type model and has made a lot of great moves over the last few years, albeit maybe a little slow out the gate.
I went to the Wal-Mart in Hunstville, TX during the overnight shift about a decade ago and I still can't sleep through the night after what I saw.
I used to work the graveyard shift unloading trucks and stocking shelves at a Walmart when I was much younger. That was about the oddest bunch of people I've ever worked with. Like a circus act. Then I used to stop at a Walmart in Ennis on the way from Dallas to Houston around 3-5am every once in a while, which always reminds me to post this : http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/
i remember back in the early 2000s when we still went to stores to buy stuff that I'd tell my friends i went to best buy to buy something and they'd look at me weird because apparently all the cool kids go to fries. how time has changed.
I have one somewhat near me in Dallas and last went there two years ago to buy a TV and didn’t notice it being like this video and pretty busy with people buying stuff. Still think the concept of just having that huge of a space to have everything doesn’t work so well these days and what’s hurting the stores. Back in the early 2000s I thought the store off 45 in north Houston was greatness and bestbuy on crack. Anyone know how that one is looking these days?
Went to the Frys off of 59 near west airport a couple of weeks ago, and it was pretty depressing. I don't think the store shelves were as empty as some of the previous posts, but it felt like nothing was going to get restocked, and there was pretty much no one in the store.
Yeah, I have a feeling not restocking will make the liquidation easier. Hopefully it turns around, but as others mentioned not looking good in Austin or other stores. I'll still go for capacitors/special connectors for pc/electronic boards but... Sucked this last time, even parts for that were dwindling. No Solder or wick one time... Like wtf?? Amazon is convenient but not when you need something same day in hand for a repair (if it's past same day cutoff or not available for same day). Unfortunately now that Frys might be going, and RadioShack as well as a dew other smaller stores are gone, it's becoming harder to have stuff for same day. And the electronic parts I need for repair unfortunately aren't at best buy etc.. That's what's nice on home Depot/Lowes etc, tools for projects/parts for home projects I like same day. What's crazy is Harbor Freight still seems to be killing it, and they're in the same parking lot in Austin... I just like having options is all, especially on some damn Hyundai I was fixing on the side.., People don't like to wait sometimes.
In other "death of retail" news: I was just told by workers at a local Staples store that their store, along with a neighboring store, are closing by August 2--- though other locations are going to remain open. I wonder if it has to do with something to do with their plans of converting some stores into co-working spaces, or if they are just straight-up closing shop: https://www.forbes.com/sites/sanfor...ther-retailer-to-private-equity/#6ae1bd7a59b3
I went to a staples to look for some filing cabinet folders with the winged tabs. Looked around awhile cause no employee was around, found them after about 10 mins, finally found them and then saw the price. You wanna talk about a wtf moment. A 8 pack of the folders were $25.... They had their brand product for $8 a six pack, but we're out.. I said eff this and went to Walmart even though I despise that place. 5 bucks for an 8 pack. How the hell does staples stay in business with their high ass margins? I can understand a little higher prices for being just an office supply store, but damn....
I think office contracts is what keeps them alive. Same with office Depot or office Max. Just my assumption though.
Needed a charger for a Sony camera. Was going to order it online for 35. Went to Best Buy and they price matched it from 50 to 35. Only cost diff was the cost of me driving to Best Buy 3 miles away.
The saddest one is the one on nasa road with the spaceship theme. Went there for the first time last year thinking this the fancy nice one. Oof...instead it looks like the crashing of a NASA rocket.
Frys used to have some hunnies working there. Especially the 45 north one. Haven’t stepped into a Frys in maybe five years?
My nephew, who works at NASA, was a frequent visitor there. I haven't talked about anything except baseball and the Rockets with him in a couple of years. Next time I see him, the Spaceship will be a topic of conversation! He must be shocked, as surprised as I was when I walked into the Austin Fry's a couple of weeks ago.
