Circuit City weighs closings and pinkslips

[Van]

Given that there are a few members here who have gear through CC with warranties I felt it good enough to post this here.

Circuit City Weighs Broad Cuts - WSJ.com

Circuit City Stores Inc. is considering a plan to close at least 150 stores and cut thousands of jobs, as an alternative to filing for bankruptcy-court protection, said people familiar with the company.

Earlier this month, the nation's No. 2 electronics retailer by sales hired Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP -- the law firm that oversaw the Chapter 11 reorganization of Kmart -- as its bankruptcy counsel, according to several people familiar with the matter.

Circuit City also retained FTI Consulting Inc. to develop a turnaround plan and investment bank Rothschild Inc. to guide talks with banks and ...

 

[navychop]

Guy I work with read some analysis that basically said they're going under. Didn't expect them to survive. How valid that is, who knows? I'd rather see them stick around to compete with BB.

 

[satjay]

I dont shop to often at circuit city, because there is not real close buy, how do they differ from a BB in reagrds to sales not being that good for them

 

[riffjim4069]

Guy I work with read some analysis that basically said they're going under. Didn't expect them to survive. How valid that is, who knows? I'd rather see them stick around to compete with BB.

When my wife told me she has to analyze a local company during one of her MBA classes last year, I told her to take a look at CC since the company was based out of Richmond. I used to shop at CC during the 80s and 90s, but I gave up on them after coming back from Japan in 2000. Anyway, I helped her locate research articles and provided reviews of my shopping experiences between them and Best Buy. Although I really don't like BB, I found their products, services and customer support were light years ahead of CC. It's unfortunate, but we all saw this one coming!

 

[Neutron]

We just had a new Circuit City open up 10 miles from us not even 3 months ago.

 

[jayn_j]

Then there was the plane crash in Colorado a few years ago that killed half the management team.

Here in Rockford, you could play basketball in the CC without issue. Never anybody there.

 

[Van]

I've never been a big fan of CC because of its store layout and prices seemed to be a bit higher and after they did away with 90 day layaway that was it for me. BB bothers me now because of the outrageous prices for their geeksquad services and some price matching issues so I go to other retailers for electronics and computer parts though CC did get my money on a good pc deal a few months back.

 

[cjwct]

CC has ran into many problems recently . . . first, they refused to honor their online prices but now I see they are advertising their prices are the same in store as online unlike other companies; secondly, like most retailers, they're staff is ill trained and without bonuses or additional sales compensation, hourly pay is not attractive as a profession in retail; finally, most locations are directly next to, across the street or local to a bb and yet, they refuse to price match because they make sure to carry a "slightly" different model than bb . . . all in all, spells closings

 

[charper1]

Yep, its wouldn't be the first time so no big surprise its happening again..

 

[gbjbany]

We just had a new Circuit City open up 10 miles from us not even 3 months ago.

same here, on prime real estate too, It's like a ghost town.
it's next door to costco, and near bb, I cannot see how they can survive.

 

[Bulldog]

I don't shop their because it seems that all their advertised prices are attached with a rebate. IMHO if they got rid of rebates in their sales prices like BB did, they might fair better.

 

[cjwct]

don't know if it has changed, but their rebates are mail in and not online like bb or staples; yet another problem unless they corrected that

 

[Stargazer]

So, what would this mean if CC went out of business? I got an extended warranty on my laptop and it wasn't cheap. Don't they go through different people on the laptop?

 

[Jim S.]

most locations are directly next to, across the street or local to a bb and yet, they refuse to price match because they make sure to carry a "slightly" different model than bb

In my experience it's always been BB that carries the oddball model to avoid price matching. Also, I've seen lots of people complaining that BB won't match their own website prices. Circuit City used to annoy me because they sometimes had different prices on their website, but they would always match it if I asked, and just this week they made a big announcement that the prices would always be the same now.

Last but not least, the local CC always has lower prices than the local BB. The BB didn't even bother to beat CC's prices for their grand opening sale! The only good thing I can say about BB is the local one used to have a better selection of movies and music than CC, but CC recently expanded their store.

 

[vurbano]

I walked into a Circuit City SUnday morning to buy a 3 in 1 printer for my son I had seen online at 89 bucks Saturday night. Over night it had gone up 20 bucks to 109 dollars. The salesman made NO attempt to make me an offer. I left the story, did some more searching and ended up ordering a brand new canon 5 in 1 network printer that day for 99 dollars (no tax, free shipping) from newegg which can be found at CC for 180 bucks. (good lord thats almost double the price) I think its over for CC, they are not even competitive.

 

[navychop]

Went by the CC where I bought a TV for my in-laws for Xmas. Closed. Empty. Didn't even know in advance they were going away.

 

[gasman882001]

I walked into a Circuit City SUnday morning to buy a 3 in 1 printer for my son I had seen online at 89 bucks Saturday night. Over night it had gone up 20 bucks to 109 dollars. The salesman made NO attempt to make me an offer. I left the story, did some more searching and ended up ordering a brand new canon 5 in 1 network printer that day for 99 dollars (no tax, free shipping) from newegg which can be found at CC for 180 bucks. (good lord thats almost double the price) I think its over for CC, they are not even competitive.

Read an article either in PC World or PC Magazine that stated that both BB and CC need to start being more competitive with online sellers or people will just use them to "try out" the product and then buy online. The above is a perfect example of what they were talking about. I just did the same thing at Walmart and then bought at Amazon.

 

[BobMurdoch]

Oh goody.... Another Tech fire sale coming up in January/February....

 

[DJ Rob]

I preferred Circuit City to Best Buy but they did have problems. I purchased something online and they have a 24 minute/$24 gift card deal - if they didn't have it ready for you to pick up in 24 minutes after you ordered, they would give you a $24 gift card.

I bought a Slingbox online to pickup that they ended up not even having in stock when I got there. They wouldn't honor the $24 gift card. They didn't even care. The manager said if they honored it to everyone who ordered something online that they ended up not having in stock, they would go out of business.

Well, it looks like they will be anyway...

 

[Van]

The only thing I'll consider getting from them when they start closing the local store would be a ps3 on mark down.