News Fry's done gone bankrupt

[Puffnstuff]

I got to visit a fry's a couple times in ATL, it was fun. Just another victim of online shopping

Would you remember the Siberian Outpost? I used to love shopping with them. Back in the 90's they were the only outlet to offer free same day shipping on some of their more expensive items like the Sony G400 monitor that I bought one weekend.

I ordered it Friday night just before I went to bed and the next morning my doorbell rang and a DHL driver was standing there with it. Their commercials were the best and if you've never seen one look on YouTube for the gerbil out of a cannon one.

Then Fry's bought them and it was all downhill from there.

 

[weblooker2021]

I don't understand how they didn't go bankrupt beginning of 2020. It was very clear at the end of 2019 that they were having money issue and were either not willing or unable to change their business model. Their stores were too big and they took way too long before they started price matching to Amazon and other online retailers. I remember in 2005 or 2006 trying to price match to Newegg and they just laughed at me saying it was too dangerous to order from them.

 

[kt]

I may be alone in this but I am GLAD they are bankrupt and out of business. They treat their employees like shit and the owners are douchebags.

 

[zzyzxroad]

I don't understand how they didn't go bankrupt beginning of 2020. It was very clear at the end of 2019 that they were having money issue and were either not willing or unable to change their business model. Their stores were too big and they took way too long before they started price matching to Amazon and other online retailers. I remember in 2005 or 2006 trying to price match to Newegg and they just laughed at me saying it was too dangerous to order from them.

Like many before them the owners/people at the top did not invest in anything but themselves. They came up during a time where that industry saw rampant corruption and their saving grace was probably being private . Otherwise I bet they would have eventually ended up behind bar like the brothers who who ran TigerDirect.

I bet the Fry's hare at their private island as we speak.

Luxury Real Estate: Private Islands in the Exuma Cays

Wealthy buyers like Tyler Perry and the Aga Khan are joining the likes of Johnny Depp and David Copperfield, flocking to a little-known archipelago in the Bahamas and fueling an island building boom. But privacy comes at a steep price.

www.wsj.com

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Wow, I was so amazed the first time I went to one (on La Palma, next to the 91 in either Placentia, or Anaheim). They had this big mock space shuttle in the front of the store, had Bose speaker demo rooms. And massive amounts of grey ware. With the realization that, I don't need to go to the swap meets anymore. Their ads were the only reason to pick up an Orange County Register.
But they have closed their doors

Fry’s Electronics to Shut Stores, Cease Operations - WSJ

-Its the end of an era for sure.

The Tustin Fry's location was my "home" Fry's for the time I was in SoCal.

Friends would go grab a burger, the spend the afternoon there,like a bunch of teenage girls at the mall... But actually teenage guys at Fry's.

 

[zzyzxroad]

-Its the end of an era for sure.

The Tustin Fry's location was my "home" Fry's for the time I was in SoCal.

Friends would go grab a burger, the spend the afternoon there,like a bunch of teenage girls at the mall... But actually teenage guys at Fry's.

Do you recall the burger joint? There was a hole in the wall right down the road and I think it was called Tommy's(not the Tommy's) that was really good.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Would you remember the Siberian Outpost? I used to love shopping with them. Back in the 90's they were the only outlet to offer free same day shipping on some of their more expensive items like the Sony G400 monitor that I bought one weekend.

I ordered it Friday night just before I went to bed and the next morning my doorbell rang and a DHL driver was standing there with it. Their commercials were the best and if you've never seen one look on YouTube for the gerbil out of a cannon one.

Then Fry's bought them and it was all downhill from there.

No sir, never heard of them

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Do you recall the burger joint? There was a hole in the wall right down the road and I think it was called Tommy's(not the Tommy's) that was really good.

-Well shhhiiiiieeeeeetttttt you and I were eating burgers at the same place...

 

[hal2kilo]

Like many before them the owners/people at the top did not invest in anything but themselves. They came up during a time where that industry saw rampant corruption and their saving grace was probably being private . Otherwise I bet they would have eventually ended up behind bar like the brothers who who ran TigerDirect.

I bet the Fry's hare at their private island as we speak.

Luxury Real Estate: Private Islands in the Exuma Cays

Wealthy buyers like Tyler Perry and the Aga Khan are joining the likes of Johnny Depp and David Copperfield, flocking to a little-known archipelago in the Bahamas and fueling an island building boom. But privacy comes at a steep price.

www.wsj.com

Wow, TigerDirect. Forgot about those guys.

 

[Puffnstuff]

Wow, TigerDirect. Forgot about those guys.

They bought the two CompUSA stores that were here in Jax giving us two well stocked locations to choose from. They made building super easy and if one store didn't have an item the other usually did plus they'd check for you before you made the drive so you didn't waste time. They had a dedicated pc service area where peeps could bring theirs in and have them serviced.

Then suddenly right after the FBI stung the owner in a Miami parking lot away they went. The only remaining chain that I know of is Micro Center but they are super selective where they open stores. Too bad they haven't select the largest city in FL for one.

 

[ch33zw1z]

They bought the two CompUSA stores that were here in Jax giving us two well stocked locations to choose from. They made building super easy and if one store didn't have an item the other usually did plus they'd check for you before you made the drive so you didn't waste time. They had a dedicated pc service area where peeps could bring theirs in and have them serviced.

Then suddenly right after the FBI stung the owner in a Miami parking lot away they went. The only remaining chain that I know of is Micro Center but they are super selective where they open stores. Too bad they haven't select the largest city in FL for one.

lol, crickey, those guys were all sorts of fraudulent.

TigerDirect - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I was largely "out of the loop" around that time frame...buried in 60 hour work weeks and 2 kid. But I get to lol about it now.

I bought one thing from TigerDirect around '02 - '04. It was a video card, and the video card I bought wasn't the video card I received, plus it was used instead of new. I tried to return it, but their website was a broken mess and they never responded to my attempts. So that was it for me, never bought there again.

 

[Puffnstuff]

This is exactly why I hope that Best Buy survives. They are offering components and cases both in store and online and I hope that they continue to do so. I was able to get my current gpu from them two weeks ago even with all of the price gouging and scalping going on right now.

 

[zzyzxroad]

lol, crickey, those guys were all sorts of fraudulent.

TigerDirect - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I was largely "out of the loop" around that time frame...buried in 60 hour work weeks and 2 kid. But I get to lol about it now.

I bought one thing from TigerDirect around '02 - '04. It was a video card, and the video card I bought wasn't the video card I received, plus it was used instead of new. I tried to return it, but their website was a broken mess and they never responded to my attempts. So that was it for me, never bought there again.

I work in the industry so I get all the dirt. The CEO and his corrupt brothers were the topper for that company but a funny nugget is their Apple lawsuit.

"In early 2005, the company filed a lawsuit against Apple Computer Inc. (now Apple Inc.), alleging trademark infringement, dilution and false designation of origin with Apple's introduction of Mac OS X v10.4, marketed with its codename "Tiger". Although TigerDirect had registered several tiger-related names with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Apple received trademark approval for version 10.4 (Tiger) of its OS X operating system in 2003. TigerDirect registered opposition against Apple's filing with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, and on May 13, 2005, Apple won an emergency hearing. The judge ruled in favor of Apple, considering the marks to be distinct."

This lawsuit wasn't just idiotic is cost that company a relationship with Apple. Thy were never allowed to sell Apple products after that suite until PCM purchased the name.

 

[ch33zw1z]

This is exactly why I hope that Best Buy survives. They are offering components and cases both in store and online and I hope that they continue to do so. I was able to get my current gpu from them two weeks ago even with all of the price gouging and scalping going on right now.

I've bought two items from them in the last 6 months. Most recently a 12TB USB disk for backups. I try to branch out and spread the money, or else we're going to get gouged when there's one major vendor left

 

[hal2kilo]

They bought the two CompUSA stores that were here in Jax giving us two well stocked locations to choose from. They made building super easy and if one store didn't have an item the other usually did plus they'd check for you before you made the drive so you didn't waste time. They had a dedicated pc service area where peeps could bring theirs in and have them serviced.

Then suddenly right after the FBI stung the owner in a Miami parking lot away they went. The only remaining chain that I know of is Micro Center but they are super selective where they open stores. Too bad they haven't select the largest city in FL for one.

Sounds like they took the Fast Eddie route.

 

[ch33zw1z]

I work in the industry so I get all the dirt. The CEO and his corrupts brothers were the topper for that company but a funny nugget is their Apple lawsuit.

"In early 2005, the company filed a lawsuit against Apple Computer Inc. (now Apple Inc.), alleging trademark infringement, dilution and false designation of origin with Apple's introduction of Mac OS X v10.4, marketed with its codename "Tiger". Although TigerDirect had registered several tiger-related names with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Apple received trademark approval for version 10.4 (Tiger) of its OS X operating system in 2003. TigerDirect registered opposition against Apple's filing with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, and on May 13, 2005, Apple won an emergency hearing. The judge ruled in favor of Apple, considering the marks to be distinct."

This lawsuit wasn't just idiotic is cost that company a relationship with Apple. Thy were never allowed to sell Apple products after that suite until PCM purchased the name.

Penny wise, pound foolish, a really dumb thing to go against apple with. They didn't rebrand everything as Tiger instead of apple, just one release of OSX

 

[zzyzxroad]

Penny wise, pound foolish, a really dumb thing to go against apple with. They didn't rebrand everything as Tiger instead of apple, just one release of OSX

Exactly. Suing over an OS name was just idiotic. This was when IPOD just started to take off so apple was not as relevant but still an extremely dumb move.

If I recall right it was that crooked COE's idea.

I've bought two items from them in the last 6 months. Most recently a 12TB USB disk for backups. I try to branch out and spread the money, or else we're going to get gouged when there's one major vendor left

This is how I show now as well.

 

[hal2kilo]

Exactly. Suing over an OS name was just idiotic. This was when IPOD just started to take off so apple was not as relevant but still an extremely dumb move.

If I recall right it was that crooked COE's idea.

I tried playing with a Lisa once. I figured Apple was clueless, at the time.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

This is exactly why I hope that Best Buy survives. They are offering components and cases both in store and online and I hope that they continue to do so. I was able to get my current gpu from them two weeks ago even with all of the price gouging and scalping going on right now.

While they price match Amazon, the last time I bought a bunch of components there, they were already the same price or slightly less than Amazon, and they do the 5 percent cash back too. I was also really stoked when they started carrying cases in store again. Being able to build an entire system locally, had not been possible here for a very long time. Yes, the selection is very limited, but what they have is not bad.

I felt a wave of nostalgia browsing and buying all the parts in a B&M. The gratification of same day purchase, and in store returns, is something I missed too.

As to Fry's, never lived near one or made it into one if visiting a city close to one. I do remember how many members here used to complain about the infamous customer service though.

While we are revisiting the Tiger Direct criminality, don't forget the guy that embezzled at least $65 million dollars from Fry's. https://www.seattletimes.com/business/frys-electronics-executive-accused-of-embezzling-65-million/

 

[Puffnstuff]

I've bought two items from them in the last 6 months. Most recently a 12TB USB disk for backups. I try to branch out and spread the money, or else we're going to get gouged when there's one major vendor left

Very true. My current pc was sourced from Amazon, B&H Photo, Newegg, EVGA eStore and Best Buy plus the tower came from CompUSA (I've been using it since '09).

I suppose that my next upgrade will be to replace those old cathode ray tube light bars with addressable rgb strips.

 

[zzyzxroad]

While they price match Amazon, the last time I bought a bunch of components there, they were already the same price or slightly less than Amazon, and they do the 5 percent cash back too. I was also really stoked when they started carrying cases in store again. Being able to build an entire system locally, had not been possible here for a very long time. Yes, the selection is very limited, but what they have is not bad.

I felt a wave of nostalgia browsing and buying all the parts in a B&M. The gratification of same day purchase, and in store returns, is something I missed too.

As to Fry's, never lived near one or made it into one if visiting a city close to one. I do remember how many members here used to complain about the infamous customer service though.

While we are revisiting the Tiger Direct criminality, don't forget the guy that embezzled at least $65 million dollars from Fry's. https://www.seattletimes.com/business/frys-electronics-executive-accused-of-embezzling-65-million/

There defiantly is something to being able to touch the product before buying it and the instant gratification of not waiting for it to come in the mail. I Hopefully there are enough people who apricate that experience that it never goes away.

Those kickback schemes were all to common at one point.

 

[Dulanic]

Circuit City has a pretty decent online presence. Back in the day I was one of the tech department managers.

They failed for a few other reasons. I worked there for a while too. They didn't update most the stores, they fired all their people who made over what like $13? Then they were left with all idiots. They dropped appliances.

Only thing they succeeded at after maybe 95 was carmax. Though I think they made carmax a bit earlier.