Imminent Collapse of Fry’s?

[SilverSolder]

Rents have to go down if the footfall goes down -   it makes sense that rent for a retail business location is a function of footfall...   however, many landlords have not accepted the new normal.

[langwadt]

Rents have to go down if the footfall goes down -   it makes sense that rent for a retail business location is a function of footfall...   however, many landlords have not accepted the new normal.

sometimes their hands are tied. If rent goes down valuation goes down, if valuation goes down the banks no longer have the collateral they thought on a loan, that might come in conflict with rules and regulations, those loan might have been sold on etc. etc.

[Cerebus]

I think the problems with Fry's and Radio Shack and every other electronics supply store here in the US is that nobody is interested in tinkering with electronics anymore. Only a few of us old guys, and much fewer young guys. Now people want dancing robots and AI and smartphone apps where you click a button and it does your laundry while you sit on your butt.

Ok, boomer.

Seriously this is just nonsense "old man yells at cloud" gatekeeper bullshit.  Far more people are tinkering with electronics than ever before.  They are just doing it differently than before.

You might want to step back and consider that no one has control over when they were born, just as they have no control over the colour of their skin. Would you openly say "Ok, n****r"?

Anyways, one or two things engrguy42 has said elsewhere have led me to believe he's quite young, although I may be mistaken in that.

[SilverSolder]

Rents have to go down if the footfall goes down -   it makes sense that rent for a retail business location is a function of footfall...   however, many landlords have not accepted the new normal.

sometimes their hands are tied. If rent goes down valuation goes down, if valuation goes down the banks no longer have the collateral they thought on a loan, that might come in conflict with rules and regulations, those loan might have been sold on etc. etc.

Exactly, everything is made to be long term stable, but it doesn't stop changes in society from happening and - sooner or later - adjustments need to be made.

[langwadt]

Rents have to go down if the footfall goes down -   it makes sense that rent for a retail business location is a function of footfall...   however, many landlords have not accepted the new normal.

sometimes their hands are tied. If rent goes down valuation goes down, if valuation goes down the banks no longer have the collateral they thought on a loan, that might come in conflict with rules and regulations, those loan might have been sold on etc. etc.

Exactly, everything is made to be long term stable, but it doesn't stop changes in society from happening and - sooner or later - adjustments need to be made.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subprime_mortgage_crisis

[SilverSolder]

...or "Long Term Capital Management" ? 

Long term is in the eyes of the beholder! 

[tom66]

seems to me those small niche stores are someone passionate about the subject working long hours barely making ends meet, that is not a viable business plan for a chain of stores.

it's a chicken and egg problem, no ones buying because it is expensive, it is expensive because the only thing people buy is the occational 5 resistors they forgot to order online and need right now.  And then people complain when they can't get digikey
assortment at ebay prices

Not at all.  One of these shops was recently shown on UK television;  the company sold model railways.  The owner had several Jaguars and a Porsche, and the store employed four others.  Clearly not 'barely making ends meet'.

I do think we will see a major adjustment to the value of commercial property as WFH and online shopping becomes more common.  The pandemic has only accelerated it.

[nctnico]

Nobody would question the fact that the retail industry has been destroyed by peoples' desire to buy from Amazon and China.

Not at all. The retail industry has destroyed itself by only selling high margin items. Every time I go to a store they don't have what I need. There simply is much more choice and stock online so I stopped going to stores. You read it in every story about Fry's for the past couple of years: nothing in store. How can a store make money if they don't have what people need?

and how would they afford a large stock they very rarely sell because everyone buys things online because it is cheaper?

Negotiate a better deal with the landlord to pay less rent. This seems to work in Germany where shops are much cheaper and you still find small stores which serve niches like model railways. In the Netherlands the situation is reversed. 95% of the non-food shops are selling fashionable clothes or shoes; nothing functional. The only one making a profit from those shops is the landlord. But that situation is going to change rapidly; many stores are quiting. Especially in relatively expensive city centers. Covid-19 just helped to speed up the process.

seems to me those small niche stores are someone passionate about the subject working long hours barely making ends meet, that is not a viable business plan for a chain of stores.

This is a grossly unfounded assumption. Why would people work for free? That doesn't make sense. You can do fine with a small shop for as long as the rent is reasonable. And on top of that: why should all stores be large chain stores? Having a more diverse shopping landscape is much more interesting for people. If you travel through Europe you see the exact same shops everywhere.

[bdunham7]

I think the problems with Fry's and Radio Shack and every other electronics supply store here in the US is that nobody is interested in tinkering with electronics anymore....

As usual, no, it's not about bad management at any of these large corporations. It's about customers no longer being interested. And they'd much rather pay a fraction of the price and have it delivered from China rather than keep US businesses afloat....

I'm not so convinced that there's no desire to tinker, its more like technology has advanced so much.  I wouldn't expect to see a lot of interest in a magazine that tells you how to make a two-LED blinker or an audio oscillator.  Playing with a Raspberry Pi is still tinkering. 

I think Fry's did themselves in for some reason, they went from being sort of big and messy 10 years ago to not being stocked or competitive a few years ago and then to a state of utter uselessness.  They stopped selling stuff I wanted long before I stopped going there.  Same for Radio Shack, I stopped even considering them a backup option about the time they started selling phones.  It's not just China or Amazon--just today I suddenly needed some computer parts that I forgot to order so I went off to MicroCenter.  They had my two Samsung state-of-the-art SSDs at better-than-Amazon prices and a nice selection of wired mice.  Thinking of Fry's demise, I had a look around to see how they were doing.  They were busy and although there were some bare spots in their inventory, it looked more like a bit of chaos and perhaps supply shortages rather than a dying store.  They had a huge selection of current TVs, laptops, computers, computer parts, etc and they were moving product from the looks of it.  I looked over in the smaller electronics section and they had smallish selection of NTE parts that seemed to be selected for the maker/hobby market (not a bunch of shop-worn leftovers), lots of elementary level 'kits', the Raspberry Pi/Beaglebone/etc sort of stuff.  They had wire, soldering irons (Hakko FX888D for $96), 1-lb rolls of Kester 44 eutectic.  Their DMM selection was pathetic, but I'm sure that's just their market.  3D printers--did Fry's ever get those in?  So this is the sort of place I would go to actually get stuff.  Fry's totally failed at that and while I don't know exactly what happened internally, it wasn't the fickle customers or Covid that did them in.

By the way, have you noticed that the vast majority of "tech" video channels have ultimately changed over to being more entertainment-based? That's what people are interested in. Entertainment, not tech.

That's just YouTube monetization for you.  Eddie from Kiss Analog and that Electroboom guy vs. Shahriar and Mr. Carlson.  I suppose the high-tech guys laugh at the lowbrow entertainers until they realize how much money entertainment makes.

[james_s]

I think the problems with Fry's and Radio Shack and every other electronics supply store here in the US is that nobody is interested in tinkering with electronics anymore. Only a few of us old guys, and much fewer young guys. Now people want dancing robots and AI and smartphone apps where you click a button and it does your laundry while you sit on your butt.

Nonsense, it's as big or bigger than ever. Have you seen the Maker Faires that happen (pre-Covid) every year in multiple cities? Have you been on youtube? Looked on ebay? Aliexpress? Bangood? Amazon? Digikey, Mouser, Newark, Arrow and other gadget and component suppliers are alive and well. Smartphones and robots are popular but those are a whole different set of consumers. Electronics tinkering is HUGE, it was in danger of dying off in the 90s but Arduino, Raspberry Pi and numerous other microcontrollers have been enormously popular, the new RPi models are sold out for months after release, they can't churn them out fast enough. The thing is, you can buy any electronic parts, gadgets and gizmos you could ever need online. I miss Fry's but I haven't gone to one in years, it's a ~35 minute drive each way and between the gas, time spent and wear & tear on the car it just isn't worth it. I could drive down to Fry's and hope they have the parts I need, or I could hop online and order exactly what I'm looking for without all the hassle and probably get a better price.

[james_s]

I think the problems with Fry's and Radio Shack and every other electronics supply store here in the US is that nobody is interested in tinkering with electronics anymore. Only a few of us old guys, and much fewer young guys. Now people want dancing robots and AI and smartphone apps where you click a button and it does your laundry while you sit on your butt.

Ok, boomer.

Seriously this is just nonsense "old man yells at cloud" gatekeeper bullshit.  Far more people are tinkering with electronics than ever before.  They are just doing it differently than before.

Is there any more condescending and moronic statement than "ok boomer"? I'm not even a boomer (my parents generation) and that just makes me cringe, I automatically assume that anyone who says it is either a moron or an asshole, or both. May as well just say "shut up geezer, I'm too lazy and smug to have an honest debate with you."

You know what? You'll be old before you know it and the younger generation will look at you with disdain for no other reason than you are from a different generation and don't understand the things they think are cool, and you'll think they are idiots for it and remain convinced that back in your day people knew how to do it.

[Renate]

This intergenerational rivalry stuff never used to exist.
We didn't have names for generations (outside of sociology).
But I guess that's the fault of the younger generation.

The "nobody does X anymore" / "everybody and their brother does X" is somewhat perception.
Obviously, on these forums there are a ton of electronic hobbyists.
Big cities have their Maker Faires and attract tons of people.
On the other hand, if you wore a blinky LED pendant to the supermarket many would be amazed that you built it yourself.

I find the same thing with musicians (although I would guess that here they are disproportionately represented).
When I go camping I'm always looking for musicians but seldom find any.
Still, the statistics show that amateur music is still thriving.

[james_s]

I find the same thing with musicians (although I would guess that here they are disproportionately represented).
When I go camping I'm always looking for musicians but seldom find any.
Still, the statistics show that amateur music is still thriving.

They're out there. My partner plays piano although not very frequently these days. My younger brother is an avid guitar and piano player, my dad played the cello in high school, stopped when his career took off and he started a family but he was learning to play the guitar and mandolin in retirement before he passed away. Several of my friends have been in bands that played a lot of shows in pubs and such, at least a few of my coworkers play instruments. They're out there, you just have to connect with the right circles. That's probably easier these days than ever before, there must be whole forums for musicians, probably some dedicated to players of specific instruments. Amateur music has been around for thousands of years and isn't going anywhere, it seems to be an innate part of the human mind.

[Renate]

They're out there.

True. Especially for music, there is a tendency for it to clump in families.
Although I have been amazed to see families where the parents are enthusiastic musicians and the children never bothered to learn.
Also families where everybody learned, sometimes with apparent planning who plays what to make a balanced family orchestra.

I just mean that the populations of "Does X" and "Doesn't do X" are often strangers that seem incredulous of the other side.

[LaserSteve]

Go to the Cleveland, Ohio Microcenter on a weekday say 1 PM..Throw a stone six feet in any direction. You will either hit another customer or a well trained salesperson who will bend over backwards to help you or find someone who will.

I've been in two other stores nation wide, same thing. My local store keeps wheelchairs for seniors.
My 89 year old mom gets treated better at Microcenter then she does at her physician's office.
They will have a salesperson waiting for her with a chair at the door. Their security guy watches a camera for that.

Did I mention the clean bathrooms?

Even more surprising is that they work at remembering who I am, and often ask me what I think they should stock. When I'm there for work they bend over backwards to accommodate the university's thorny paperwork, and their customer management computer is second to none.

RIP Frys, you saved my *** a few times on the road when I was an  FSE, but you were more interested in checking my receipt on the way out the door then asking me what I needed.

Long Live Microcenter!

Steve

[james_s]

Unfortunately the nearest Microcenter is a more than 18 hour drive from me so it's not really a replacement for Fry's.

[LaserSteve]

Sorry to hear that. Next time I see Microcenter's regional manager, I'll tell him they should pick up a few Fry's locations.

He's usually greeting customers at the local store.

All I can say is they own their buildings and supply chain, have their own house brand for things like Arduino, and are very well ran.

Its like stepping back into the 70s or 80s retail.. If your a Brit, think of your tech shopping being a real life "Are you Being Served ?" Episode, minus the screw-ups. Right down to dress shirts and ties on the sales guys.

Hakko and Weller on tap. They do have web ordering, too.

Steve

[thermistor-guy]

I only know Micro Center through JayzTwoCents on YouTube, but they look like they know what they're doing.

[Renate]

I've been in two other stores nation wide...

I think my count is seven. I really should have collected a "passport".

Long Live Microcenter!

Amen.

Next time I see Microcenter's regional manager, I'll tell him they should pick up a few Fry's locations.

No! That would be the kiss of death. They're too big and wasteful.

[james_s]

No! That would be the kiss of death. They're too big and wasteful.

They wouldn't have to fill the entire space, it could be subdivided in many cases.

[BrokenYugo]

Go to the Cleveland, Ohio Microcenter on a weekday say 1 PM..Throw a stone six feet in any direction. You will either hit another customer or a well trained salesperson who will bend over backwards to help you or find someone who will.

I've been in two other stores nation wide, same thing. My local store keeps wheelchairs for seniors.
My 89 year old mom gets treated better at Microcenter then she does at her physician's office.
They will have a salesperson waiting for her with a chair at the door. Their security guy watches a camera for that.

Did I mention the clean bathrooms?

Don't forget the free coffee, at least at the Detroit area one a few years ago, vending machine by the service desk.

But yeah, Microcenter is great, not only is it well staffed, but also they'll leave you the hell alone when you don't need them. I wish I was closer to one.

[oPossum]

https://twitter.com/fry_electronics

[Sal Ammoniac]

This intergenerational rivalry stuff never used to exist.

Nonsense. It's always been there. I remember old ham radio operators who wouldn't talk to kids back when I first got started decades ago as a teenager. Ditto for other hobbies as well.

[Renate]

I remember old ham radio operators who wouldn't talk to kids back when I first got started decades ago as a teenager.

In ye old days QSL (magazine) always had photos of octogenerians teaching kids Morse Code or helping with equipment.
When I was learning, an older stranger ham helped me.

[Cerebus]

I remember old ham radio operators who wouldn't talk to kids back when I first got started decades ago as a teenager.

In ye old days QSL (magazine) always had photos of octogenerians teaching kids Morse Code or helping with equipment.
When I was learning, an older stranger ham helped me.

Do you mean an older ham who was stranger than you, or an older ham who was a stranger to you? 

Those photos probably came from the same type of piles of stock photography that show every workplace to be full of shinny, happy, handsome young people who just coincidently represent every major ethnic group on the planet despite the fact that the group is too small in number for that to even be a remote possibility without contrivance.