Borders and Waldenbooks were under Kmart in the 1990's and were spun off to form Borders Group, Inc. Last year, Borders Group put themselves up for sale but in November they took themselves off the selling block believing they can make it through the current economic climate. Financially, B&N is in a stronger position than Borders but they are also facing similar issues but they haven't taken the beating that Borders has (their stock ended trading at $0.58 today).
Circuit City, Hollywood Video, Linen and Things...what's next?
- Thread starter Thespeckledkiwi
- Start date
I love how you worded that like it came out of a cookie.
Then your one of the VERY few who didn't.
Virgin MegaStore is basically boned. Which is funny, 'cause, you know...virgin.
I know what you mean. One of my early childhood memories is going with my family and extended family down to Mervyns in Visalia, California and walking through there and walking through the mall it was attached to. We would go there every time we visited and that memory would come back. The last time I spoke to my grandma she told me it was closing down and it was really hard to fathom it not being there the next time I visit.
Here in Boise it's been crazy watching places close down. Linen's N Things, Corral West Ranchwear, Mervyn's, even lots of small stores in the mall have gone bankrupt. I keep expecting to hear it's another store I frequent and hope that's not the case.
Did a little Googling and Books-A-Million closed over the passed two years about 12 stores. Now, that may not seem like a lot, but they only have about 200+ stores, so that amount is over 5% of their stores. I expect more will follow. And reportedly Borders isn't doing so well.
Circuit City killed themselves long before this crisis on Wall Street. What we are now seeing is simply that final acts of a dying company.
Circuit City never successfully established themselves in advertising the way rivals like Best Buy did. I know several people that used to work for them. A few years ago, CC cut all commission sales. They lost their best floor sales. Then a year or two ago, they cut ALL workers who were paid above a certain rate. They lost the workers who knew or cared about the stock and replaced everyone with minimumn wage Mchelp who had no reason to want to sell. All this while the management continued to get its bonuses and perks.
And now they are closing, No surprise here.
Circuit City never successfully established themselves in advertising the way rivals like Best Buy did. I know several people that used to work for them. A few years ago, CC cut all commission sales. They lost their best floor sales. Then a year or two ago, they cut ALL workers who were paid above a certain rate. They lost the workers who knew or cared about the stock and replaced everyone with minimumn wage Mchelp who had no reason to want to sell. All this while the management continued to get its bonuses and perks.
And now they are closing, No surprise here.
I think the question to ask is what franchise stores are left? You look at electronics, and well, it's sadly just Best Buys now.
I think the next to go will be the office supply stores. Right now, we have Staples, Office Max and Office Depot. I say one of those will have to go down.
I think the next to go will be the office supply stores. Right now, we have Staples, Office Max and Office Depot. I say one of those will have to go down.
This is deceiving since what happened is that Blockbuster bought Hollywood. They're being run as a sister division like Chevrolet and Pontiac.
Both stores in Mesa are doing very well.
The one here is doing just fine as well.
Movie Gallery bought Hollywood, not Blockbuster. That's one reason why Movie Gallery was in bankruptcy. They had too much debt after buying Hollywood Entertainment.
I think it's safe to say that a good deal of the economy of this city is office work, yet whenever I go into an Office Depot, I'm almost guaranteed to be one of only two people in there.
I know a lot of businesses here (including, in some cases, the government itself) are buying direct from wholesalers and cutting out retailers altogether. Usually, office supply chains are sort of a "good in a pinch" kinda convenience for when you run out of ink cartridges or need special kinds of folders, but I'm finding a lot of people are simply making due without those things or planning ahead and buying in bulk from manufacturers.
I too believe that one of those companies (Office Max/Depot) is going down soon.
I know a lot of businesses here (including, in some cases, the government itself) are buying direct from wholesalers and cutting out retailers altogether. Usually, office supply chains are sort of a "good in a pinch" kinda convenience for when you run out of ink cartridges or need special kinds of folders, but I'm finding a lot of people are simply making due without those things or planning ahead and buying in bulk from manufacturers.
I too believe that one of those companies (Office Max/Depot) is going down soon.
I for one can't believe that steak and ale closed all of its restaurants. The one here was always packed. It was always at least a thirty minute or more wait.
The only things that are closing in my area are the chains that have gone bankrupt nationally, like Circuit City and Linens and Things (
). Our Borders is doing great (it's ALWAYS packed), Best Buy and Kohl's are always busy. My local shopping center is not only booming, it's expanding, with the addition of a Barnes and Noble (which will probably take away from Borders), Sephora, and a bunch of other big names.
). Our Borders is doing great (it's ALWAYS packed), Best Buy and Kohl's are always busy. My local shopping center is not only booming, it's expanding, with the addition of a Barnes and Noble (which will probably take away from Borders), Sephora, and a bunch of other big names.
Shoe Pavilion went under recently too. That was my one destination for affordable designer shoes that were a season or two old. Now there's just DSW, which is pricier and a way smaller selection for men.
They had good steak, but what I'll really miss is their Cheesy Garlic Loaf
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