Goodbye Circuit City

Life, the universe, and everything.
Forum rules
- No personal attacks against players or staff members - please be civil!
- No posting of mature images/links, keep content SFW. If it's NSFW, don't post it on these forums.
Ashiwi
Sojourner
Posts: 4161
Joined: Thu Jun 14, 2001 5:01 am

Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Ashiwi » Mon Nov 10, 2008 3:55 pm

I'm leaning toward it not making it through the holiday season this year. Unless it can somehow pull in miraculous numbers over the other big names like "Best Buy", which is doubtful since it's never been known to offer better deals, at least not in my area, and that's going to be crucial for those shoppers trying to make the most of their buying dollar this year.

Which other large names will be taking the Yellow Brick Road this year?
Gormal tells you 'im a dwarven onion'
Gormal tells you 'always another beer-soaked layer'

Inama ASSOC:: 'though it may suit your fantasies to think so, i don't need oil for anything.'

Haley: Filthy lucre? I wash that lucre every day until it SHINES!
Kifle
Sojourner
Posts: 3830
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2002 6:01 am
Location: Huntington, IN USA
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Kifle » Mon Nov 10, 2008 5:01 pm

Hrm, I'm not sure Circuit City will fold as a company because of one seasonal profit loss -- look at K-mart. I'd imagine, at the worst, it will get bought out and restructured. But, then again, I'm not too learned in the area of corperate business, so my opinion is very uninformed...
Fotex group-says 'Behold! penis!'

Kifle puts on his robe and wizard hat.

Thalidyrr tells you 'Yeah, you know, getting it like a jackhammer wears you out.'

Teflor "You can beat a tank with a shovel!!1!1!!one!!1!uno!!"
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Mon Nov 10, 2008 7:00 pm

I don't follow retail very well, but I'd say that several boutique clothing retailers will not make it unless they cut prices and profits big. I'd expect a rash of bankrupticies in January and February.

I think companies that specialize in consumer appliances (TV, refrigerators, ect) may be at high risk. Consumer electronics as well, but I'm struggling with a name that could actually fail rather than just have an abysmal year. Circuit City died 4-5 years ago imo so I don't really count it.

I'm imagining that DVD and CD sales may actually improve temporarily (especially if they cut prices) as people look for cheap "family" gifts.
Kifle
Sojourner
Posts: 3830
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2002 6:01 am
Location: Huntington, IN USA
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Kifle » Mon Nov 10, 2008 8:21 pm

Nice insight on that last line, Kiryan. I just heard on the way home that Circuit City just filed for bankruptcy protection. What exactly does that do, and does this do anything on anyone's projection of the outcome of Circuit City?
Fotex group-says 'Behold! penis!'

Kifle puts on his robe and wizard hat.

Thalidyrr tells you 'Yeah, you know, getting it like a jackhammer wears you out.'

Teflor "You can beat a tank with a shovel!!1!1!!one!!1!uno!!"
Ragorn
Sojourner
Posts: 4732
Joined: Mon Jan 29, 2001 6:01 am

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Ragorn » Tue Nov 11, 2008 12:49 am

Circuit City filed chapter 11 today. While that doesn't necessarily mean closing... they're fucking gone, man. They've got the same liquidators that handled CompUSA working in 150 of their stores.

Tweeter closed up shop this month also.
- Ragorn
Shar: Leave the moaning to the people who have real issues to moan about like rangers or newbies.
Corth: Go ask out a chick that doesn't wiggle her poon in people's faces for a living.
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:55 pm

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122636691864515981.html

about clothing boutique shops and a little about how designers share the burden.

Circuit city hasn't been competitive for a long while and I don't see how bankruptcy can do anything but make it worse by putting it farther out of customers and continuously dimishing name recognition. Also, bankruptcies rely on getting bankruptcy financing to cover costs while they retool the business. Bankruptcy financing is very hard to come by right now. GE finance, one of the leaders, recently completely stopped bankruptcy lending stating that it was too volatile right now.

I'm thinking that commercial real estate... the kind that own malls and lease out retail space, are probably going to be feeling it by Q2 next year. Retail leases often involve cutting the building owner in for a certain % of sales. Besides the loss there on this holiday season, businesses are going to be looking to reduce their rent and some are going to close.
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Tue Nov 11, 2008 6:11 pm

Infrastructure spending is probably a good bet too. Roads, bridges, transportation, energy grids ect...

State and Federal government is going to try and spend its way out of a recession and job losses and it certainly doesn't hurt that there are large union presences in all these industries.

I think groceries will do better and restaurants will do worse, but thats just obvious stuff.
flib
Sojourner
Posts: 322
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2004 11:14 pm
Location: Annapolis, MD

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby flib » Wed Nov 12, 2008 12:07 am

on topic of kiryan's post, I wonder what's going to happen to the music stores. it seems like digital is the new way of music but everyone doesn't have a computer so I wonder if another format will come out. Probably not, as i'd assume cd sales are abyssmal at the moment.

I used to work in a local mom and pop record store and we had to shut down because the sales were just.. not good, it was sad. Music stores are going the way of the dodo.
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:15 pm

Best Buy warned from a 2-3% gain to a 1-8% decline vs last year. I didn't expect that.

I figured their sales would be down, but would hold up better than high margin clothing type purchases. They actually have nice stores and decent product as compared to circuit city which had cheap products, crappy service and their stores are not very appealing aesthetically.

Is CompUSA still in business? I'd guess they'd have a rough 3 months ahead of them as well.
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:21 pm

well you know Sony and Toshiba were duking it out for the next DVD standard... (hd vs bluray)... the analysts were happy that a standard had been agreed upon, but they still not sure whether there is a future for disc based entertainment period audio or video.
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:24 pm

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/In ... 11208.aspx

mall operator warning about possible bankruptcy.
Xisiqomelir
Sojourner
Posts: 870
Joined: Sun Aug 25, 2002 5:01 am
Location: Ixarkon
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Xisiqomelir » Thu Nov 13, 2008 7:36 pm

kiryan wrote:well you know Sony and Toshiba were duking it out for the next DVD standard... (hd vs bluray)... the analysts were happy that a standard had been agreed upon, but they still not sure whether there is a future for disc based entertainment period audio or video.


As long as US network infrastructure remains globally substandard, physical media will persist.
Thus spake Shevarash: "Invokers are not going to be removed"

Gura: ..btw, being a dick is my god given right as an evil.
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Thu Nov 13, 2008 8:14 pm

I'll agree to some degree on the infrastructure, but I'll also throw in that there is a "critical mass" at which physical media is no longer a viable business and will not receive investment in new standards, new players ect ect ect...

The slow adoption of BluRay is a case in point even if you give substantial weight to the uncertainty over which format would win...
Kifle
Sojourner
Posts: 3830
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2002 6:01 am
Location: Huntington, IN USA
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Kifle » Thu Nov 13, 2008 9:07 pm

kiryan wrote:The slow adoption of BluRay is a case in point even if you give substantial weight to the uncertainty over which format would win...


I think there are more factors that should be looked at discussing this slow adoption: two of these being the most important. The first is the failing economy. With little disposable income, and no forseeable increase in the near future, for most families, the enormous pricetag on the players alone is a detraction to the utility of the media. Secondarily, the necessary peripherals one must add to take advantage of the benefits of BluRay over DvD are also expensive -- HDTV.

As it stands now, there is little utility in BluRay for the average consumer -- despite its benefits. It's just not cost-effective to switch over until the market forces it through limiting or halting the supply of the current (yet dated) technology.
Fotex group-says 'Behold! penis!'

Kifle puts on his robe and wizard hat.

Thalidyrr tells you 'Yeah, you know, getting it like a jackhammer wears you out.'

Teflor "You can beat a tank with a shovel!!1!1!!one!!1!uno!!"
Ashiwi
Sojourner
Posts: 4161
Joined: Thu Jun 14, 2001 5:01 am

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Ashiwi » Fri Jan 16, 2009 4:49 pm

So who are the next ones in line?
Gormal tells you 'im a dwarven onion'
Gormal tells you 'always another beer-soaked layer'

Inama ASSOC:: 'though it may suit your fantasies to think so, i don't need oil for anything.'

Haley: Filthy lucre? I wash that lucre every day until it SHINES!
Xisiqomelir
Sojourner
Posts: 870
Joined: Sun Aug 25, 2002 5:01 am
Location: Ixarkon
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Xisiqomelir » Fri Jan 16, 2009 8:01 pm

kiryan wrote:I'll agree to some degree on the infrastructure, but I'll also throw in that there is a "critical mass" at which physical media is no longer a viable business and will not receive investment in new standards, new players ect ect ect...

The slow adoption of BluRay is a case in point even if you give substantial weight to the uncertainty over which format would win...


BD's adoption rate is much higher than DVD's was at ~2 years. As a format, it's doing fine.
Thus spake Shevarash: "Invokers are not going to be removed"



Gura: ..btw, being a dick is my god given right as an evil.
kwirl
Sojourner
Posts: 780
Joined: Thu Feb 08, 2001 6:01 am
Location: Delaware
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kwirl » Sat Jan 17, 2009 11:54 am

omg its a xisilive!
Gormal
Sojourner
Posts: 3917
Joined: Tue Feb 13, 2001 6:01 am
Location: A Whale's Vagina
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Gormal » Sat Jan 17, 2009 11:12 pm

Anyone who even thinks that blue-ray isn't the new standard is just kidding themselves. Sony wants blue-ray, so blue-ray we shall have.
Tanji Smanji
Sojourner
Posts: 765
Joined: Thu Apr 18, 2002 5:01 am
Location: Atlanta, Georgia

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Tanji Smanji » Sun Jan 18, 2009 11:06 pm

WTS a slightly used beta player, laserdisc player and HD player. Man, my luck with format wars so far is frelling terrible.
How to go from Waelos to Weylarii.

Weylarii group-says 'oh shit! my penis is stuck in the toaster. afk'

Corth ASSOC:: 'up to you.. need a ranger, but if you want to afk i can probably find someone else'
kiryan
Sojourner
Posts: 7275
Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2001 5:01 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA and Flagstaff, AZ
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby kiryan » Mon Jan 19, 2009 12:08 am

wow thats some mad skills right there, how do you feel about the zune? =)

we had betamax, but i wasn't dumb enough to buy into laserdisc or HD.
Raiwen
Sojourner
Posts: 430
Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2001 6:01 am
Location: Atlanta, Ga USA
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Raiwen » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:40 am

Went to Circuit City today to see the deals.

All the hard drives are GONE in the store I went to. There are still quite a few TVs. Cell phones are scarce. Most everything is 10% off - except for Apple stuff. Cables are 30% off. There was a section on clearance which was stuff I didn't need. They had some good deals on "open box" merchandise, such as laptops, etc. One of the laptops looked like it was "open box" for about 2 years as the AMD sticker was faded.

As it is now, that 10% basically makes everything tax-free - give or take a few bucks depending on locale.

I'm personally waiting on 30% or more on stuff...
Corth
Sojourner
Posts: 6002
Joined: Sat Jan 27, 2001 6:01 am
Location: NY, USA

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Corth » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:50 am

The liquidation sales usually aren't very good. Too many people think they are getting great deals. You can find much better deals on places like fatwallet.com without having to wait for the retailer to go out of business.

That being said, I took the time today to read the corporate history of CC on its investor page. Kind of sad to see how a store grows from a mom and pop enterprise into a multi-billion dollar retailer employing thousands.. and then gets managed into the ground by the people who took over after the original founder and family leave. Businesses are amazing things for all involved. Employees earning an honest paycheck. Consumers getting goods or services they require. Its no small job to build something like CC had.. and its sad to see it all get torn down.

I guess its more opportunity for the next mom and pop enterprise..
Having said all that, the situation has been handled, so this thread is pretty much at an end. -Kossuth

Goddamned slippery mage.
Sarvis
Sojourner
Posts: 6369
Joined: Fri Jan 26, 2001 6:01 am
Location: Buffalo, NY, USA
Contact:

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Sarvis » Tue Jan 20, 2009 4:03 am

Corth wrote:The liquidation sales usually aren't very good. Too many people think they are getting great deals. You can find much better deals on places like fatwallet.com without having to wait for the retailer to go out of business.

That being said, I took the time today to read the corporate history of CC on its investor page. Kind of sad to see how a store grows from a mom and pop enterprise into a multi-billion dollar retailer employing thousands.. and then gets managed into the ground by the people who took over after the original founder and family leave. Businesses are amazing things for all involved. Employees earning an honest paycheck. Consumers getting goods or services they require. Its no small job to build something like CC had.. and its sad to see it all get torn down.

I guess its more opportunity for the next mom and pop enterprise..


How much did the new management get paid to destroy the company, just because they were "worth it?"
<a href="http://www.code-haven.com">Code Haven</a> - For all your programming needs.

I detest what you write, but I would give my life to make it possible for you to continue to write. - Some Guy Who Paraphrased Voltaire
Ragorn
Sojourner
Posts: 4732
Joined: Mon Jan 29, 2001 6:01 am

Re: Goodbye Circuit City

Postby Ragorn » Tue Jan 20, 2009 4:11 am

Raiwen wrote:As it is now, that 10% basically makes everything tax-free - give or take a few bucks depending on locale.

I'm personally waiting on 30% or more on stuff...

And you can't return/exchange it if it's defective.
- Ragorn
Shar: Leave the moaning to the people who have real issues to moan about like rangers or newbies.
Corth: Go ask out a chick that doesn't wiggle her poon in people's faces for a living.

Return to “T2 General Discussion Archive”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 18 guests