Staples closing 225 stores across the US...Radio Shack closing 1,100

[Just the facts]

I've been preaching it for awhile and Steve mentioned it today on his chat - the era of the big box retailers is over. If your business relies on a large parking lot it is time to get a new business.

[Plutonic Panda]

I've been preaching it for awhile and Steve mentioned it today on his chat - the era of the big box retailers is over. If your business relies on a large parking lot it is time to get a new business.

I disagree with that.

[bchris02]

I think CompUSA's downfall was the changing landscape of computers. People stopped buying towers and customizing them. Computers started getting cheaper and cheaper. Laptops became popular and were for the most part a closed box environment. As bandwidth increased, software began to be disseminated online more so than in boxes on shelves. CompUSA became a niche store for the tinkerer much like Radio Shack. I don't know that having too much stock on the shelf was a major contributor to the downfall of CompUSA.

All true, but I still see the Internet as being far more instrumental in the death of CompUSA though than the change of computing trends. CompUSA didn't really have anything to distinguish it from competitors as far as the average joe, novice buyer was concerned. You could get the same low-end laptop at CompUSA or Best Buy and it wouldn't make a difference. Where CompUSA had a HUGE advantage was for the hobbyist. It was a slam dunk in the late '90s. By the mid-2000s, most PC enthusiasts were ordering their parts online rather than buying them at a brick-and-mortar store. That left CompUSA as being only a showroom or the place of last resort when you were in a crunch and couldn't wait for shipping. The stores simply couldn't survive as that.

RadioShack in many ways is similar. Their smaller stores and lower overhead has likely enabled them to last longer but I think the ultimate death of the brand is inevitable.

[bchris02]

[Brett]

The Staples located at NW 63rd & N. May Ave (aka French Market Mall) has been closed. The signage is down and the expandable gate at the entrance is locked.

[Pete]

The Staples located at NW 63rd & N. May Ave (aka French Market Mall) has been closed. The signage is down and the expandable gate at the entrance is locked.

Hobby Lobby is taking most of that space along with the old Bed, Bath, and Beyond.

[Bunty]

The Staples located at NW 63rd & N. May Ave (aka French Market Mall) has been closed. The signage is down and the expandable gate at the entrance is locked.

Staples finally closed in Stillwater and got replaced by a much-wanted Harbor Freight. Too many smaller towns had long had a Harbor Freight.