Circuit City closing 155 stores, leaving 12 markets

[JonInMiddleGA]

I mention this mostly in its own thread because there might be some bargains to be had come Wednesday.

Circuit City to close all 16 Atlanta locations | ajc.com (http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/stories/2008/11/03/circuit_cty_closing_stores.html?cxntlid=brkng_nws_bnr)

Circuit City announced plans Monday to close 155 stores, including all 16 of the electronics retailer’s metro Atlanta locations.

The company will also close stores in Macon, Warner Robins and Athens. The store locator on the Circuit City Web site now lists only three stores within 100 miles of Atlanta — Rome, Columbus and Chattanooga, Tenn.

The company said in a news release that the 155 stores that will be closed “are under performing or are no longer a strategic fit for the company.”

According to a statement posted on the Web site, stores pegged for closing will not open on Tuesday, and store closing sales will begin on Wednesday.

“The company expects the sales to be completed no later than calendar year end,” the statement said.

The press release blamed the decision to downsize the chain on several factors, including “waning consumer confidence and a significantly weakened retail environment” that the company said has negatively impacted sales.
...

In addition to Atlanta, looking at the store closing list found here (http://investor.circuitcity.com/announcement.cfm), there's quite a few markets that I know have FOFC'ers -- Phoenix, Jacksonville, Columbus OH,
a lot of locations in CA, IL, TX.

[gstelmack]

Good, the two stores I shop at regularly are being left alone.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I can't say that I'm terribly surprised about the store closings. I go to two of the four being closed in KC. Both of them are extremely empty most of the time and in a horrible location. One of them is near my home and opened less than a year ago. Talk about tossing money out the window.

[flere-imsaho]

Thanks for the heads-up, there's 2 within about 10 miles of me, so I might snag a deal or two.

[Flasch186]

FWIW, the 2 in Jacksonville were built right around a huge PUD called Oakleaf Plantation. It is quite symbolic that the 2 closings occur in an area that is supposedly a part of the next impending housing run. CC is really on the ropes however and while the merger w/ Blockbuster I thought was a horrible idea for Blockbuster I thought it was a very good idea to try to save the skin of CC. When BBI pulled the plug there went CC's prospects, IMO.

[Eaglesfan27]

Yeah, one of the ones near me is closing as well - might be worth checking out. They opened a new store within the last 3 months that is in a much better part of Baton Rouge and it is staying open, but it looks like quite a few of the stores in Louisiana are closing.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Like MBBF, I can't say I'm terribly surprised about this but I hate to see it happen from a consumer standpoint (I hate to see it happen economically too but I understand it).

The CC here is head & shoulders better with customer service than the BB (which seems to just get worse & worse) and I actually enjoyed shopping there.

[Poli]

They really need an Easy Button.

[Logan]

The CC here is head & shoulders better with customer service than the BB (which seems to just get worse & worse) and I actually enjoyed shopping there.

Wow, talk about a difference. Not that BB is great with customer service, but at least in Jersey they actually man cash registers and have people walking around. At all the CCs I've been to back there, you can only pay at the main customer service desk and there are no employees to be found.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

FWIW.....I think the management decision to put up a CC near each Best Buy was a brutal management decision. While the policy makes perfect sense in regards to fast food (several restaurants would just put up a place near any McDonalds), it's a lousy decision in regards to electronic retail. I would usually go to the Best Buy nearby and only go to CC if I felt like the deal at Best Buy wasn't reasonable. I'm guessing that's not what they had in mind.

[Eaglesfan27]

I was just the opposite, I preferred CC and only went to Best Buy if CC wasn't offering a reasonable deal or if they didn't have the object I wanted to buy.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Wow, talk about a difference. Not that BB is great with customer service, but at least in Jersey they actually man cash registers and have people walking around. At all the CCs I've been to back there, you can only pay at the main customer service desk and there are no employees to be found.

Around here you finding an employee in BB is more like the retail version of hide-and-go-seek. Finding one that has an IQ with three digits is more like trying to find a unicorn.

[Poli]

You are in Georgia, right? Jon, what are you expecting?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I was just the opposite, I preferred CC and only went to Best Buy if CC wasn't offering a reasonable deal or if they didn't have the object I wanted to buy.

My problem was that my local Circuit City's available stock would vary quite a bit. Some days I could find exactly what I needed while other days, they wouldn't have certain products.

[miked]

There's a few relatively near me, including a decent one near Buckhead, so I guess I'll be bottom fishing for stuff when they close.

[sterlingice]

Like MBBF, I can't say I'm terribly surprised about this but I hate to see it happen from a consumer standpoint (I hate to see it happen economically too but I understand it).

The CC here is head & shoulders better with customer service than the BB (which seems to just get worse & worse) and I actually enjoyed shopping there.

Definitely agree on both counts. I'd rather go to Circuit City than Best Buy any day in terms of customer service. That said, here in Richmond, which is the corporate headquarters of CC, a lot of my coworkers don't like them at all and would much rather deal with BB so I suppose that's telling.

SI

[sterlingice]

FWIW.....I think the management decision to put up a CC near each Best Buy was a brutal management decision. While the policy makes perfect sense in regards to fast food (several restaurants would just put up a place near any McDonalds), it's a lousy decision in regards to electronic retail. I would usually go to the Best Buy nearby and only go to CC if I felt like the deal at Best Buy wasn't reasonable. I'm guessing that's not what they had in mind.

I didn't realize they had done this but, looking around, it does seem to be the case. They should have known they would get killed going head to head with BB as they don't have the marketing bucks and image to compete.

SI

[Alan T]

I am trying to figure out why I didn't like shopping at Circuit city... I just don't have a good reason. The only things that I can think of that i did not like are things such as The stores were always dark or not very well lit up while Best Buy usually felt wide open and were very bright. There didn't seem to ever be many people around who could help find things, while Best Buy you usually have to beat off the people offering to help. (Even though the quality of employees in both stores was pretty lacking, often you just need someone to get something down from a high shelf, or to look in the system to see if something was in stock in the back.)

The prices at Circuit city usually were a bit higher for most of the things that I looked at, but not really enough for me to completely shun it like I ended up doing. I think it just ended up being an apperance thing more than anything else I guess.

[JonInMiddleGA]

you usually have to beat off the people offering to help.

Brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "customer service"
:D

[Alan T]

Brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "customer service"
:D


My quote was taken out of context! I feel so dirty, this must be how a politician feels! :)

[gstelmack]

In these discussions in the past, it's become pretty clear that in some places CC sucks and BB is great, and it flips in others. In this area CC has had MUCH better customer service, although BB's recent focus on improving their customer service has improved the one store near us.

[sterlingice]

I can't say that I'm terribly surprised about the store closings. I go to two of the four being closed in KC. Both of them are extremely empty most of the time and in a horrible location. One of them is near my home and opened less than a year ago. Talk about tossing money out the window.

I can't believe they're closing down the one at Oak Park Mall. They moved out of their old location across the street into the old Ultimate Electronics building (that's another story for another day (http://www.operationsports.com/fofc/showthread.php?p=620846&highlight=ultimate+electronics#post620846) that symbolizes all that is wrong with "consumer choice") and I thought they were going to do pretty well head-to-head with the Best Buy across the street that was in a crappy location, intersection-wise, and was a much smaller store compared to the CC.

The one down on Metcalf- I always liked that one because it was one of the "hidden" ones that not as many people went to. So, if I saw a great deal on CAG, there was a chance they still had some copies left there.

SI

[DanGarion]

Glad the ones I go to aren't on that list.

[Logan]

I didn't realize they had done this but, looking around, it does seem to be the case.

Same here. BB opened up a store on 43rd and 5th about 3 years ago, and CC added a site right next door when a Staples closed. Since it's a block from my office, I walk by them pretty much everyday and the amount of traffic is night and day in favor of BB.

[rjolley]

The one thing I didn't like about CC was I could walk into the store an look around and none of the salespeople would come and ask if I needed help. Even though I usually know what I want when I go in, there were times I would go in and would like some assistance, like when I looked at car stereos for my car. Best Buy has usually been better about it, though it can be hard to find someone to help you in there as well.

All that said, I'll stop by the CC near the house and see what the deals are like. Maybe the wife will get her new tv sooner than expected, which means I may get mine sooner as well. :)

[Schmidty]

I'm surprised that the one here in Bellingham is staying open. It's in a terrible location, and there is never anyone even in the parking lot.

[gstelmack]

The one thing I didn't like about CC was I could walk into the store an look around and none of the salespeople would come and ask if I needed help. Even though I usually know what I want when I go in, there were times I would go in and would like some assistance, like when I looked at car stereos for my car. Best Buy has usually been better about it, though it can be hard to find someone to help you in there as well.

That's what I mean about differences: I've had a pair of Best Buy employees actively WALK AWAY from a counter I was walking up to so they could continue their conversation an aisle over.

[rjolley]

I can't believe they're closing down the one at Oak Park Mall. They moved out of their old location across the street into the old Ultimate Electronics building (that's another story for another day (http://www.operationsports.com/fofc/showthread.php?p=620846&highlight=ultimate+electronics#post620846) that symbolizes all that is wrong with "consumer choice") and I thought they were going to do pretty well head-to-head with the Best Buy across the street that was in a crappy location, intersection-wise, and was a much smaller store compared to the CC.

The one down on Metcalf- I always liked that one because it was one of the "hidden" ones that not as many people went to. So, if I saw a great deal on CAG, there was a chance they still had some copies left there.

SI
I used to go to the old location when I lived in Olathe. I wondered who moved into the Ultimate Electronics building across the street. Thought it was a horrible place for Ultimate Electronics to open, though, with Circuit City across one street and Best Buy across another. Did they close the one out near the CompUSA (which I'm sure is closed now) and Copeland's? Can't remember the streets now...

[rjolley]

That's what I mean about differences: I've had a pair of Best Buy employees actively WALK AWAY from a counter I was walking up to so they could continue their conversation an aisle over.
Yeah, I don't doubt that at all. Best Buy also often has WalMart syndrome...20+ people in line and 1-2 registers open.

[TCY Junkie]

That's what I mean about differences: I've had a pair of Best Buy employees actively WALK AWAY from a counter I was walking up to so they could continue their conversation an aisle over.

They were probably trying to find somebody that also didn't know what they were doing so they wouldn't look bad.

[kcchief19]

It looks like a complete pullout of Kansas City. I'm only disappointed from a competition stand point -- I typically preferred BB because it seemed like their stories were better organized and had deeper selection, especially with CDs and DVDs. It was nice to be able to go to CC if they had a better price.

Here's another black mark on Jim Collins' Good to Great book. Don't know if you read that pop-economics sensation, but the premise of the book was focusing on 11 companies that went from being "good" to "great" and embodied the principles of being "built to last" -- the title of his previous book. Two of the 11 companies profiled were Fannie Mae and Circuit City. D'oh.

People just don't get that if you have a whiz-bang management theory on to make a company "great" or "built to last," you make a lot more money putting in practice than shelling it out to the sheep at $25.95 a pop in hardcover.

[Daimyo]

I used to go to the one closing in Chicago a lot a few years back and I don't think I ever saw more than 5 other people in the store at any one time while the the Best Buy right around the corner was always packed. That's an extremely busy area and yet somehow they managed to pick a horrible, horrible location that was hard to get to on foot or by car.

[Izulde]

Wow, the Fayetteville one is closing.

Hey MJ4H, wanna go bargain hunting? :D

[stevew]

I'm waiting for the "Sears closes 150+ stores" parody thread. I keep telling the dudes I work with to have one eye open for something new. Who knows if they'll get it. My CC isn't closing, I prefer them a ton to BB.

[MJ4H]

Almost definitely, if I can find the time.

[stevew]

In part, this is what CC gets for dumping their experienced staff a few years ago, and replacing them with teenagers making 8 bucks an hour. Although, it may have been inevitible.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I'm going to re-hash a post I made on March 3, 2007. This was my last real experience with Circuit City (at a store in Louisiana which is apparently closing):

I once stood in the checkout line at a Circuit City to buy a $5 item, and the employees literally stared at me while I waited at the only register at the front of the store. The guy at the front door stared at me. The girl at the customer service counter stared at me. A couple of employees roaming the store walked by and stared at me. Obviously, I could have asked if I was standing in the wrong spot, but I had time to kill, and it became a war of wills. After five solid minutes, I left the empty checkout line, put my item back on the shelf, and walked out the front door, right past the employees who had stared at me.

Not one of them said a damned thing to me.

I don't hold a grudge or anything. I have a Best Buy less than 10 minutes from my house, and the closest Circuit City is about 30 minutes away. I don't expect great customer service at either place (call me jaded, I suppose), so I just go to the one that's closer. It's just that my experience above is how I will always think of Circuit City, so I'm not terribly surprised that 836 of their stores are closing.

[TCY Junkie]

I'm going to re-hash a post I made on March 3, 2007. This was my last real experience with Circuit City (at a store in Louisiana which is apparently closing):

[/color]

I don't hold a grudge or anything. I have a Best Buy less than 10 minutes from my house, and the closest Circuit City is about 30 minutes away. I don't expect great customer service at either place (call me jaded, I suppose), so I just go to the one that's closer. It's just that my experience above is how I will always think of Circuit City, so I'm not terribly surprised that 836 of their stores are closing.

At least they don't have to go around in pairs like BB to keep from getting stuck in the corners.

[Lathum]

Looking at the list I am not at all surprised the Freehold, NJ store is closing. Going into that one was horrid and there is WAY to much competition in that area. I am shocked the one in Brick is staying open, it's 1/2 mile from best buy and in a horrid location.

[Logan]

Looking at the list I am not at all surprised the Freehold, NJ store is closing. Going into that one was horrid and there is WAY to much competition in that area. I am shocked the one in Brick is staying open, it's 1/2 mile from best buy and in a horrid location.

Funny, I didn't check the closing list before but the Freehold store made up about 99% of my experience with shitty CCs in Jersey that I posted about.

[Cringer]

The ones down here are staying open. Mexican nationals crossing over to shop on our side always helps bump up sales numbers. I am glad though, as we don't really go to Best Buy and that would leave us only with CompUSA.

[cougarfreak]

I was just the opposite, I preferred CC and only went to Best Buy if CC wasn't offering a reasonable deal or if they didn't have the object I wanted to buy.

+1

[Draft Dodger]

I'm surprised that the one here in Bellingham is staying open. It's in a terrible location, and there is never anyone even in the parking lot.

same deal here - I'm sure if I ever went inside ours I'd see tumbleweeds, even though there isn't a BB within an hours' drive. but it looks like they aren't closing anything in New England.

[stevew]

Probably trying to save some locations for a merger attempt with another retailer. I guess.

[Capital]

I think CC has a lot of older stores and the retail ambience inside is rather stale. I used to prefer CC about 10 years ago but has since flipped to BB.

[saldana]

i am surprised not to see my local store on that list, as the last time i was in there a few weeks ago, there were empty shelves everywhere, and very few employees.

even more surprising is not to see the next nearest store, as it is in a horrible location, and always seems very unclean inside.

those things said, i am glad my local store is staying open..it would be a pain in the ass to have to drive to the nearest BB anytime i needed anything.

[Balldog]

I think I heard today they were closing all their stores in Michigan. They just had the Grand Opening for one two miles away from our office. Kind of silly.

[Balldog]

Dola, I just looked at the list. That one is indeed closing. The guys running Circuit City must have automotive OEM backgrounds.

[Shkspr]

With a market capitalization that's still less than $60 million, they won't keep a lot of the surviving stores open for long. If they can keep from being shuttered, they'll have to get down to their top 150 or fewer stores within a few months. I'm certain they'll announce anouther 100+ closings once they pull anything salvagable out of this batch.

[AZSpeechCoach]

I liked playing CC off of BB when it came to DVD releases. Who had the better schwag for the best price. Lately, Target has been beating the pants off of both of them. CC had more obscure DVDs. If I needed Clash of the Titans or the 2-disk Color Purple for school the next day, I could usually find it at CC. King Kong Lives? Only at CC. I also bought my current laptop there for a very good price.

On the other hand, the place seemed very disorganized, with no clear system for sorting their DVD or CD sections, very little in the way of good gaming, and a poor selection of ipod and computer accessories.

[stevew]

I hate Best Buy passionately, so I will be sad if CC goes away. Granted I end up buying the majority of my shit at Sears. Employee discount ftw!

[stevew]

Theoretically there should be some amazing deals on stuff like TV displays in the upcoming months. They won't ship those out. At some point I'm sure they will be giving them away, probably for close to half off or more. Boxed items will probably be hard to come buy. If you do buy one of their open box items, definitley decline their warranty. If you want a warranty, go through some place like Mack online, can't think of the other places I've heard are good.

[rjolley]

My wife asked me how the return policy and warranty will work with there being no stores in the area. For computers, shipping it out is possible, but what about tvs? Would they provide a service contract with another agency, or is it basically an as-is deal?

I'm guessing limited return...buy it, get it home, and make sure it works before the place closes.

[stevew]

In theory, test in the store. It should be covered by the manufacturers warranty for the first year from purchase, or whatever the TV's original warranty is. But you'll definitely make sure you register it with the manufacturer. With a display item, a technician will be able to see the total amount of hours that it's been on. Usually in a retail setting, one year of being on the floor is equivalent to approximately of 3 years of home viewing. Granted you don't have the constant on/off switching. But you do run some risk that if certain parts fail 6-8 months into the manufacturers warranty(after you bought it), that they'd say it's not a defective part that's causing your troubles. And it's due to normal wear and tear, which typically is not covered. LCD replacement panels, for instance, often cost as much as the set does. Once you account for installation, trip charges, etc.

So, in short, I would hesitate before buying any open box LCD or Plasma TV, unless you are willing to accept those conditions. Or are willing to spend a little bit extra on some sort of 3rd party warranty service contract. Although that kills the deal basically.

[GrantDawg]

Like MBBF, I can't say I'm terribly surprised about this but I hate to see it happen from a consumer standpoint (I hate to see it happen economically too but I understand it).

The CC here is head & shoulders better with customer service than the BB (which seems to just get worse & worse) and I actually enjoyed shopping there.


Ditto. And our store always seemed busy. Oh, well.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I dropped by my local store last night just to see if there were any deals. To me, it looked like these employees got blindsided. There were no deals at all because of the immediate nature of the notification/closing. Also, they were tearing down the store at 5:00 PM when I went in there. They weren't planning on staying there long after closing time.

[JonInMiddleGA]

There were no deals at all because of the immediate nature of the notification/closing.

I believe the press release said the plan was to be closed today (Tuesday) and that the closing sales would begin on Wednesday when they re-opened.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I believe the press release said the plan was to be closed today (Tuesday) and that the closing sales would begin on Wednesday when they re-opened.

Oh, I didn't catch that. That makes a bit more sense. I guess they were tearing down all the signage to get ready for Wednesday then. Thanks for setting me straight.

[Capital]

It's a shame because it is one less player for price competition. Also, CC was oftentimes willing to meet prices from another retailer. Oh well...

[BishopMVP]

Here's another black mark on Jim Collins' Good to Great book. Don't know if you read that pop-economics sensation, but the premise of the book was focusing on 11 companies that went from being "good" to "great" and embodied the principles of being "built to last" -- the title of his previous book. Two of the 11 companies profiled were Fannie Mae and Circuit City. D'oh.I had to read both of these for a management course. Weirdly, Built to Last I thought was actually pretty good, but Good to Great was trash thrown out to capitalize on the success of the first one. Although it did seem one trend wasn't being mentioned - that all but one or two of the CEO's profiled in the first one were no-nonsense ex-military people. (So you're saying being disciplined, hard working, fair and have the calm management style that comes from having management experience in a war zone helps create a lasting company. Shocking.)People just don't get that if you have a whiz-bang management theory on to make a company "great" or "built to last," you make a lot more money putting in practice than shelling it out to the sheep at $25.95 a pop in hardcover.But if you have a management practice that only sounds good, and doesn't actually have applicable value going forward, you make more selling the $29.95.

[Karlifornia]

I'm going to re-hash a post I made on March 3, 2007. This was my last real experience with Circuit City (at a store in Louisiana which is apparently closing):

[/COLOR]

I don't hold a grudge or anything. I have a Best Buy less than 10 minutes from my house, and the closest Circuit City is about 30 minutes away. I don't expect great customer service at either place (call me jaded, I suppose), so I just go to the one that's closer. It's just that my experience above is how I will always think of Circuit City, so I'm not terribly surprised that 836 of their stores are closing.

Listen...instead of whining, why don't you just open your own "Tircuit City" stores.

[stevew]

Listen...instead of whining, why don't you just open your own "Tircuit City" stores.

Is this a Cyril response?

[Pumpy Tudors]

i am so done

[MJ4H]

Danger Will Robinson.

[MikeVic]

hahaha.

[AZSpeechCoach]

I guess I need to go to CC tomorrow afternoon and see what good shit they have.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Are there any places where they are advertising the clearance? Any word on how long this clearance period will last? I'm going to drop by after work to see if prices have dropped at all.

[fantom1979]

I worked for CC about a decade ago when they were expanding into the midwest. It was a great place to work. All of the salespeople were commission and it was a really professional place to work. A couple of years after I left, they dumped all of the "pros", dumped commission, and went with $8/hr kids. The customer service level dropped and the stores started to age.

The Best Buy in my area expanded and remodeled and it appears that they have doubled their work force. You cannot walk down an aisle without being asked if you need help.

After 15 years in retail, I firmly believe that a company and store managers set the tone for customer service. A company can be fully on board, but if the store manager doesn't care, the employees won't care (the opposite is true as well. A good store manager can make a crappy company look pretty good).

[GrantDawg]

I worked for CC about a decade ago when they were expanding into the midwest. It was a great place to work. All of the salespeople were commission and it was a really professional place to work. A couple of years after I left, they dumped all of the "pros", dumped commission, and went with $8/hr kids. The customer service level dropped and the stores started to age.

The Best Buy in my area expanded and remodeled and it appears that they have doubled their work force. You cannot walk down an aisle without being asked if you need help.

After 15 years in retail, I firmly believe that a company and store managers set the tone for customer service. A company can be fully on board, but if the store manager doesn't care, the employees won't care (the opposite is true as well. A good store manager can make a crappy company look pretty good).


Clarke Howard was pointing that out as the death-knell to CC. They cleaned house about 15 months ago and got rid of any long time managers or employees with higher salaries. Now, they are fighting to stay solvent. Bean counters can cut your nose off to despite your face.

[MJ4H]

Any word on what kind of deals there are?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Son of a ... I forgot all about this today until I noticed the thread bump.

[Shepp]

I went by the store at Mall of Georgia today and wasn't very impressed with the sale prices. They were pretty much 20% off DVD's and CD's, 10% off computer accessories and televisions, and 5% off laptops and computers. My guess is that the discounts will grow as the end of the years gets closer but right now they're nothing special.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I dropped in and picked up some discounted printer ink cartridges. I think that Shepp is correct that prices will drop as time goes along, though I don't know if they've said how long this clearance period will last.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Found an article in the KC Star about the liquidation sales. Says the stores will close on December 31st and prices will drop further as the closing date approaches.

http://www.kansascity.com/746/story/877216.html

[SnDvls]

I went by the store at Mall of Georgia today and wasn't very impressed with the sale prices. They were pretty much 20% off DVD's and CD's, 10% off computer accessories and televisions, and 5% off laptops and computers. My guess is that the discounts will grow as the end of the years gets closer but right now they're nothing special.

same thing here in AZ too

[kcchief19]

Yeah, the discounts are nothing to get excited about but the crap is clearing off the shelves. Don't plan on discounts going too deep -- when Organized Living did their store closings, the discounts maxed out at 30% on the good stuff. They might push out discontinued models to the closing stores to get rid of stuff but don't count on it. The store I was at today should be cleaned out well before Dec. 31. Those people buying Blu-Ray players are going to crap their pants in a few weeks.

Like a lot of things at CC, it's hit and miss. I picked up a digital recorder that was about the same price as Amazon but the other recorder I looked at was still about 25% higher than Amazon's price. I also picked up a portable mini hard drive that is $155 at Best Buy and was $135 at CC plus the 10% off.

But here's the consume warning -- I picked up five items and only one of them rang up with the discount. Four of the five rang up at full price with no discount. They fixed it but be warned to look at your receipt carefully if you head to CC.

[AZSpeechCoach]

I did grab some Wii Points cards at 10% off, so that was something...

[Izulde]

Yeah, I wasn't impressed with the discounts at all. 5% on video games, 10% on accessories and other electronics, 20% off on CDs and DVDs. I thought about a couple DVDs, but 20% isn't that much off in that area, really.

[tyketime]

Looks like bigger problems are on the horizon for Circuit City:

Circuit City Stores has filed for bankruptcy about a week after it said it would close 20 percent of its stores.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Looks like bigger problems are on the horizon for Circuit City:

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that's been expected as part of this realignment. Bankruptcy isn't necessarily a bad thing if it reduces your debt and interest expenses.

[tyketime]

It will be interesting to see how it shakes out. CC is suppose to open a brand new store near my house in the next couple of months, although there is another one 5 miles down the road (which is apparently doing pretty well).

[DaddyTorgo]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that's been expected as part of this realignment. Bankruptcy isn't necessarily a bad thing if it reduces your debt and interest expenses.

yeah, I believe this has been expected...

[hukarez]

Yeah, I wasn't impressed with the discounts at all. 5% on video games, 10% on accessories and other electronics, 20% off on CDs and DVDs. I thought about a couple DVDs, but 20% isn't that much off in that area, really.

+1

I drove 30 minutes out to the nearest CC that was closing down, and I wasn't too impressed too. I'm imagining as time progresses, we'll hopefully be seeing larger savings akin to how CompUSA did it over here in SD.

At least I managed to get a Commodores Greatest Hits CD out of it.

[gstelmack]

At least I managed to get a Commodores Greatest Hits CD out of it.

I miss my Amiga...

[kcchief19]

I take everything back ... DO NOT GO TO CIRCUIT CITY'S STORE CLOSING SALES UNLESS YOU WANT TO GET HOSED!

Aside from my fake discount problem when four of the five items on my receipt didn't ring up with any discount, they will not honor any warranties.

I purchased a digital recorder that had a fair price on it, although I later found that had a I searched a little harder I might have been able to find it online for a similar price with shipping. I open it up and take it out, and the recorder has a system error. I consult the manual and it actually says if you get this error return it to where you purchased it or submit to an Olympus repair center.

I returned to the store and simply wanted to exchange it for a working recorder -- they had at least one more in stock on the shelf. They wouldn't do it, and told me to call customer service. I got on the phone with their customer service number, explained I purchased the device at one of their stores that is closing and that it didn't work and the customer service people told me that I should be able to exchange it. The store still refused. I was polite for as long as I could be. I asked them to call their corporate office. She went in the back and came out with instructions on how to send something to an Olympus repair center.

I then told them I was glad they were going out of business and walked out.

[JPhillips]

Well, that didn't work. According to CNBC CC is going to be liquidated.

[larrymcg421]

I went about a month ago and they had huge discounts. Bought myself Deadwood 2nd season for $20 and a PC with 4GB Ram for $350.

[rowech]

I called on December 26th to replace the lamp in our TV...thanks to our warranty, fully covered. Was "out of stock" and the order was on hold. I call Monday of this week and am told this but that things have been restocked and I can expect it to go out this week. Now this. I'm going to be livid if they yanked my chain for a month on this and there won't be a damn thing I'm going to be able to do about it.

[Shkspr]

Ah, now the fun part: discount employee shopping. There's always a few people left at any retail establishment that knows it's dying that aren't proactive enough to jump the sinking ship before the closings are announced (too much ambition) but who are loyal and competent enough to see these things through to the bitter end. I've found you can almost always walk into a closeout sale and walk away with two or three interviews lined up with people who need a job quick and are worth hiring.

EDIT: I should point out I run a retail business. This isn't some sort of Subby/Fritz type kink deal.

[DaddyTorgo]

Ah, now the fun part: discount employee shopping. There's always a few people left at any retail establishment that knows it's dying that aren't proactive enough to jump the sinking ship before the closings are announced (too much ambition) but who are loyal and competent enough to see these things through to the bitter end. I've found you can almost always walk into a closeout sale and walk away with two or three interviews lined up with people who need a job quick and are worth hiring.

EDIT: I should point out I run a retail business. This isn't some sort of Subby/Fritz type kink deal.

very true!

[sterlingice]

As if Best Buy didn't already have an invisible sign up that says "We can treat you like #$%@ and you can't do anything about it"

SI

[RendeR]

All three locations in western NY are closing. Good Riddance to bad Rubbish IMO. I'll likely survey the remains when the closeout sales begin. nothing like picking over the corpse of a dead company.

Steve and barry's and Linen's and things both shut down around here right after the holiday also.

[stevew]

I was becoming. A Steve and Barrys fan and then it was gone. Sigh.

[Pyser]

I was becoming. A Steve and Barrys fan and then it was gone. Sigh.

i enjoyed this punctuation and capitalization.

[JPhillips]

I was becoming. A Steve and Barrys fan and then it was gone. Sigh.

From what I've read Steve and Barry's was just a big ponzi scheme. They'd get money from mall/shopping center folks to open stores that sold goods too cheaply to ever earn a profit. So long as they opened enough stores they stayed afloat, but when the growth slowed they were doomed.

[stevew]

i enjoyed this punctuation and capitalization.

Cell phone post. Sorry if I offend. Too much work to find certain keys.

[cuervo72]

I thought it had a rather poetic quality.

[rowech]

So what kind of deals do you think we're going to see with this?

[SackAttack]

Cell phone post. Sorry if I offend. Too much work to find certain keys.

Furniture store? I thought I saw a store with that name going out of business here.

[SackAttack]

So what kind of deals do you think we're going to see with this?

Probably nothing terribly special for smaller items, especially things like iPods which can be re-allocated to another retailer by the manufacturer.

Larger items like furniture and big-screen TVs, 'nother matter entirely.

[Mustang]

So what kind of deals do you think we're going to see with this?

I'd imagine tomorrow everything will be jacked back up to MSRP and then discounted 10% to start.

It'll be a freakin madhouse there tomorrow though I'd expect.

[stevew]

Unless something dramatic happens I suspect that we will have a similar thread about Sears closing within the next 2 years. Its always been about selling the service contracts and such but in the past six or so months its gotten out of hand.

All that matters anymore is signing people up for credit and pushing warranties. Without the contracts they would rather not sell merchandise, even in higher mark up areas like appliances and tools. There are less and less employees around, basically every day is bare bone staffing. The customer service has really fallen off. And to top it all off, it seems as if the on hand stock levels are embarrasingly low. And sales just continue to drop.

[sterlingice]

Unless something dramatic happens I suspect that we will have a similar thread about Sears closing within the next 2 years. Its always been about selling the service contracts and such but in the past six or so months its gotten out of hand.

All that matters anymore is signing people up for credit and pushing warranties. Without the contracts they would rather not sell merchandise, even in higher mark up areas like appliances and tools. There are less and less employees around, basically every day is bare bone staffing. The customer service has really fallen off. And to top it all off, it seems as if the on hand stock levels are embarrasingly low. And sales just continue to drop.

And that's going to take KMart with it since they're all one "big, happy" family now...

CC closing is going to hurt Richmond quite a bit since they're the corporate HQ.

SI

[henry296]

Drove by CC yesterday and they advertised 30% off outside. Did not have a chance to go in.

[dervack]

It's only 30% off furniture.

[sterlingice]

The discounts I saw were 30% off accessories for most stuff (all the Wiimotes are long gone, tho, for instance), 20% off movies and digital picture frames, and pretty much everything else at 10%.

SI

[MikeVic]

Unless something dramatic happens I suspect that we will have a similar thread about Sears closing within the next 2 years. Its always been about selling the service contracts and such but in the past six or so months its gotten out of hand.

All that matters anymore is signing people up for credit and pushing warranties. Without the contracts they would rather not sell merchandise, even in higher mark up areas like appliances and tools. There are less and less employees around, basically every day is bare bone staffing. The customer service has really fallen off. And to top it all off, it seems as if the on hand stock levels are embarrasingly low. And sales just continue to drop.

Better use my $70 credit there soon.

[MikeVic]

With CC going blah, does that mean The Source is as well?

[Maple Leafs]

With CC going blah, does that mean The Source is as well?
My understanding is that they're still profitable and will probably be sold off.

[gstelmack]

The discounts I saw were 30% off accessories for most stuff (all the Wiimotes are long gone, tho, for instance), 20% off movies and digital picture frames, and pretty much everything else at 10%.

SI

Yeah, 10% off most stuff. Need to wait a few weeks before heading down there methinks...

[Mota]

With CC going blah, does that mean The Source is as well?

Bids are still going for the Source. It's actually a separate company called Intertan that CC owns. They are also profitable in Canada. Most likely they will be bought out and continue to operate as is, not sure if the name would have to change though. I think the official deadline for bids is this Friday so we'll see shortly.

[Tasan]

I believe with a lot of the name brand stuff like Nintendo, Dell and HP they can get credit back on returns. So when sales prices fall below that point, they simply get credited back. I'd imagine they actually sold very few Wiimotes and such.