Oh, the shack, forever has been the place to find that replacement television tube or computer jack, has admitted defeat, and has filed for bankruptcy earlier this week. For decades, Radio Shack has been famous for bringing personnel computers to the masses, and supplying any extra and replacement parts released a list of nearly 2,000 stores that will potentially close, although, most likely it will be all that are proposed, and what is left of the chain by the end of 2015.
The nearly 100 year old company announced that filing for bankruptcy protection on Thursday, that it has found a deal to sell up to 2,400 stores to the wireless carrier Sprint.
Although the economic difficulties almost a decade ago may have claimed several chains, and ruined others for there more recent endings like blockbuster, the movie rental chain that was in a struggle for almost 10 years, Radio Shack seemed to hold on, but what might have drove them to bankruptcy was there marketing strategist that started in early 2014 with the Superbowl commercial advertising that the company knew they were outdated, and had to change in order to survive.
Found below are some pictures I chose that I find to be my favorites, the vintage stores still found in the hundreds of more modern and recent designs.
Original Radio Shack Electronics Retailer:
A corporate photo showing the many personnel computer systems that original parent company Tandy, was producing and selling it the chains heyday.
That famous ad from 1991 that shows at the time, the average consumer needed to spend nearly 5,000 dollars for all the merchandise on the ad, and now we have a small, flat rectangle in are pockets that can do everything these devices could do and more.
If anyone has anything to say about Radio Shack, stories, experiences, or photos, please feel free to post and comment below.
Thank you for reading.
Post any pictures of the stores around you, or old memorabilia below.
ReplyDeleteOh Radio Shack, where do I begin:
ReplyDeleteWhen I was 12, I moved into a home about a block away from a Radio Shack. I was aspiring to become an Electronics Technician, and I used to hang around that store. When they put the tube tester in the "As-is" bin, I bought it.
My folks bought me a TRS-80 in 1979. I would hang out using the computers in the store until they would kick me out.
My first real job was as a salesman at Radio Shack. I didn't get to work in the store near my folks house - they sent me to a really sketchy part of town. Got robbed once, good times. I used to let my friends come in and play games on cocos so I wouldn't be alone in the store all weekend.
I did become an Electronics Technician - in the Navy. During my technical school, me and my roommate would take cab rides out to nearby Radio Shacks. One of my favorite things was to ask to see the spiff list (discontinued stuff that they would slash prices on to get it out of store inventory).
Being an ET was a partial dead-end. Nobody was fixing consumer electronics in the late 80s. I did spend most of a year working for Computer City in '96 (owned by Radio Shack). After that, I got into the computer industry.
I was sad when I saw all the blister packed 200's components (still labeled as "Radio Shack") at Fry's.
Radio Shack was a store that was always doomed. It represented a window of time where after a trip to the local 'Shack, you could etch your own circuit board, and make something cool. For me, it was a necessary stepping stone for getting to something much better. Bitter sweet memories. Now, I've got to drive 2 hours to find the nearest remaining franchise store. Goodbye and thanks, old friend.