R.I.P. Circuit city

[opendriver]

http://newsroom.circuitcity.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=359619


1949-2009

And to think I was going to get a job there. It was really sad to see PC club go, and now CC. I have a few close friends that work at my local store, and they will soon be out of jobs.

 

[Riders Motion]

Does that mean a lot of good games for cheap in the next few weeks?

 

[YSSMAN]

To really be honest, I'm not all that upset. I think the last thing I bought at Circuit City was an iPod, back in 2004, and that was it. The store was otherwise out of my way, the prices were never that competitive, and overall I just didn't care for their quality of service. With Wal*Mart, Costco, Target, and even local chains like Meijer getting into the electronics business... Circuit City pushed themselves out of the fray.

What Happened?

Interesting. Its been a terrible year or two for the company, and the bad economy surely didn't help things along.

RE: What about inventory? Prices? Etc?

A source in the know informs us that no matter how exactly things move forward from here (it's still murky as to the logistical details from a store level over the next few days), any sales will be gone with all prices moving back to MSRP, or well over market price in most cases. Oh, and watch those extended warranties, too.

*source

As someone who just went through liquidation in a retail store (Steve and Barry's), much of this is going to depend on who runs it, how the courts want it done, and what kind of time frame they have to get things cleaned out. If things are supposed to go back up to MSRP so they can pay off their creditors, my guess is that sales are going to be bad, and they may need to re-consider how they're going to get things to go away. But, knowing stupid people, they may just pay for it because they think its a great deal.

Electronics probably won't have big discounts on them if they do get around to making sale stuff. CDs, DVDs and videogames could be pretty cheap though. Hard to say...

 

[McLaren]

Does that mean a lot of good games for cheap in the next few weeks?

Don't count on it. Liquidation starts next week and everything will be gone by Friday.

 

[ND4SPD]

Odd that the Canadian operations of Circuit City are unaffected.

 

[wfooshee]

Our local store was one they closed last fall, and the good stuff went fast, but there were still things to be had right up to the end, including some big-ticket items like large-screen plasma sets. DVD and Blu-Ray players were wiped out early, but plenty of receivers and camcorders late. Very few digital cameras lasted very long, but lots of movies and PC games, if you could muddle through the un-alphabetized shelves.
No video cards, hard disks, or CD/DVD burners late, but routers were there along with some other network stuff and a couple of laptops. No memory cards (SD, Memory stick, etc.) left at all.

If you have your own store of some kind, the fixtures were for sale, too.

 

[YSSMAN]

Anyone have reports from the field? CNET had an interesting article on what went on over the weekend.

nside, it was close to pandemonium. (The manager would not let me take pictures inside the store.) Consumers swarming everywhere: every one of them with at least a few breathless questions and scant employees to provide answers. And consumers seemingly snapping up anything that wasn't nailed down. (I've never seen so many HP wide-screen monitors in one checkout line.)
One male employee in the section I was browsing, spent most of the time I was there (about 15 minutes) pleading ignorance and searching for a manager who never (apparently) materialized.
A female employee I talked to outside (she was on break) said no one knew it would happen--until it happened.
What was ironic (and sad) was that I had been to this same Circuit City a few weeks before and an employee had boasted that this store would not close (in the wake of the limited nationwide store closings Circuit City had announced in November) and would be around for a long time.
My take as a consumer? The sheer scale, selection, organization, and relative attention to display detail that one senses at Best Buy proved to be a huge disincentive for going back to Circuit City--and CompUSA for that matter. Statistics don't lie. I have been to Best Buy dozens of times in the past two years. I've been to Circuit City--even though it's closer--maybe six times, and always as a last resort.
Ask your casual consumer, who is familiar with both stores, why Circuit City failed and the answer is often summed up in two words: Best Buy. Others will say Amazon--but that's another story.

I also read up on the situation from some of the more business-oriented blogs and press outlets, and apparently one of their liquidators is the same company that did some of the work for my former employer. Knowing how they operate things, I can absolutely confirm a total breakdown in management coupled with the general feeling that no one... anywhere... knows whats going on.

That makes me feel even worse for the Circuit City employees, because as it sounds, they had the same thing happen to them. They were left in the dark, lied to, and then their bosses were able to duck out under the cover of Great American (or any of the other liquidators) scotch free. I do hope that they continued their bonus program for management, because I know it will help that small portion of the 30,000 employees who are losing their jobs. Nevertheless, its just terrible all around.

 

[McLaren]

The employees at my local CC are the same. The cashier told me customers were telling them would probably be losing their jobs 2 weeks before management let them know. Sad. 👎

 

[ND4SPD]

Now what I find odd about this is that they said their Canadian operations would be unaffected but all The Source stores (A Canadian version of Radioshack owned by circuit city) around here are pretty much having an inventory closeout sale with items 70% or more off. As if they're trying to get rid of everything in the stores. Yet no word of any of these stores closing.

 

[ceiling_fan]

I've more or less boycotted CC since I heard about what happened on 3/29/07. One of the worker's even won a regional award for exceptional sales a few weeks before being fired. 👎

 

[CDailey]

I had an interview at a Circuit City back in Florida about 2 months ago. I got the job, but a friend that works there said that the week they were going to call me in for training was the week they got word their store was being shut down so they never even bothered to call me and let me know.

 

[Azuremen]

I can't say I am upset at all. Between odd ball people and the fact that all their great "Deals" required lengthy mail in rebates, I just couldn't bother myself to shop there. Despite Best Buy generally being more, their sales are instant discounts, and not some round about MIR, along with having more selection and a less crowded, cheap feel.

So, nto really missing Circuit City, though am annoyed I am not closer to one to take advantage of massive discounts that go with shutting down.

 

[YSSMAN]

From The CC Files

Those poor saps who bumrushed Circuit City this weekend thinking they'd save money on a TV were paying more—before sales tax—for than most online stores, according to HDGuru and our own quick survey.

Gary at HDGuru checked out a store in Long Island and found that the Panasonic TH42PZ85U that lists for $1100 was selling for $990, but PriceGrabber offered it as low as $930. Ditto for Sony's $2800 KDL46XBR6, which sells for $2520 at Circuit City but online for $1975.

Lest you think this is a one-off thing, and that the Long Island store might not have been representative, my conversations with someone at an Orange County, California Circuit City revealed more or less the same pricing on mainstream Panasonic and Samsung models. I cross checked them with Amazon, and they were available online for substantially less, and that was before I factored the free shipping and sales tax breaks.

We only checked TVs, but knowing CC's historically crappy pricing, I can only assume this is a trend. Did any of you make a run for it? And if so, did you get any actual deals?

Figures, they've gotta pay off the loan sharks before any real sales happen. Thats what they did in our store, giving only moderate discounts before we all did a downward spiral into hellish 80%+ off sales.

 

[wfooshee]

I don't see why everybody's whining about no big discounts. It's early days. That's the way things are done. Having been through numerous such closings (McDuff's, Rex, and our Circuit City last month, to name a few) they start with shallow dicounts against their standard pricing. They're not looking to provide the best possible price, they're looking to unload stuff as fast as they can for as much as they can.

Start with small discounts, drop the prices over time. Those people who really want something will go in often, catch the last one or two items. That'll be their best price.

There are people out there who won't shop online because they think it's dangerous, and there are also people (say it isn't so!) who don't even know you can shop online.

 

[nk4e]

I stopped by my local CC and just saw a few people. Not a group, like I wanted to seeing. Knowing how they are closing, I just see a few people.

 

[nick09]

CC is not very popular in my area but they did just barely make 60 years in the business.

 

[Pupik]

There are people out there who won't shop online because they think it's dangerous, and there are also people (say it isn't so!) who don't even know you can shop online.

...and for those of us who want/need something now.

 

[Moglet]

Out of interest, what other US companies have gone down the pan lately?

The ones in the UK that I'm aware of are;
-Woolworths
-Barratts
-Faith
-Morgan
-Stead & Simpson
-Dolcis
-Impulse (Company I worked for)
-Zavvi
-Whittards
-Wedgewood
-Land of Leather
-MFI
-Miller Brothers
-Adams
-Viyella
-Olan Mills
-USC
-Officers Club
-Fads
-MK One
-The Pier
-Hardy Amies
-Joy
-Rosebys
-Willis Gambier
-Wrapit
-Ilva
-New Heights
-Toyzone
-Base
-The Works
-Sleep Depot
-Cardfair/Card Warehouse

That's only counting retail companies, I can't find information on construction or office work etc.

 

[Mark T]

What I can't seem to understand is how these companies don't have backup finances for when the economy isn't so good. They seem to run only when the economy is booming. Do they not keep reserves to see them through the bad times? These companies make millions which are probably taken as dividend payments by the fat cats at the top. As soon as things get difficult the company folds leaving the workers at the bottom of the chain out of work while the CEO and directors have already made there fortune.

It happens regularly in the UK with Ltd companies. A Ltd company can run up massive debts and the debt is held against the Ltd company and not the directors. A local gas engineering firm in my town recently run up massive debts with its bank (close to £100,000). It then folded writing off the debt but then re-opened six weeks later under a different trading name.

 

[seckcimike]

That is the cause of the "george bush" derogatory world we live in"

 

[Moglet]

What I can't seem to understand is how these companies don't have backup finances for when the economy isn't so good. They seem to run only when the economy is booming. Do they not keep reserves to see them through the bad times?

It doesn't appear so. The management are probably taking most of the money, then they walk away with their big fat pay cheque and leave the low paid workers unemployed to deal with the consequences.

I've still not been paid for my week's work when the company I worked for was under administration control. The rest has been paid by the Insolvency Service. Yet the managers have walked away with their money no problems whatsoever.

 

[seckcimike]

THis is for Mark T, you have to understand the situation we are facing here in america, idk if you live here or not, but this is as close to depression as we can get!..............Banks closed down, fortune 500 closed down, this is like a domino effect; When big boys get hit, it affects everything. There is no such thing anymore as back up finances, cause banks are broke, and people dont want to put more money on something that cant be fixed.



Just an example, I work as a foreman in a shipping company, we ship everything mostly cars + parts and export them, we recently just moved and merge with a different company so, both businesses wont close down. We use to do 70-80 containers a day, now its about 20-35 containers a day, why? because no one is buying cars, no body is shipping anything.


We spend 40 billion a month staying in Iraq so do the math.

 

[Danoff]

That is the cause of the "george bush" derogatory world we live in"

Yea... deregulatory world... right.

 

[seckcimike]

Yea... deregulatory world... right.

Yea lol, i was quoting chris rock "the messenger" that stand up is so dam funny, you should watch it.

 

[Moglet]

I forgot one;

-Corus

 

[YSSMAN]

Out of interest, what other US companies have gone down the pan lately?

They're expecting thousands upon thousands of small businesses fail this year, but the exact number I do not know. As far as retailers go, its been all over the place:

- Circuit City: Big box electronics retailer
- Steve and Barry's: Discount clothing chain (I worked there for four and a half years)
- KB Toys: A formerly awesome kids toys shop
- Bennigans: A moderately tasty dining establishment
- The Sharper Image: Neat gizmo retail store
- Linens N' Things: Big box housewares company

My guess is that 2009 will decide the fate of a lot of companies who do not have their ducks in a row. It seems like that, around here, the restaurant businesses are doing "just fine," but retail stores are not. My current employer, GAP Inc, is still doing pretty well. If there was a clothing retailer to survive this economic "S-storm," that would be it.