Discussion
Pretty crap for those working there but it's been on the cards for a long time. The game has moved on but Comet hasn't. Everything switched off, monkeys in suits with poor product knowledge trying to shift 'warranties' over selling you the product itself and don't even start me on their £60 HDMI cables....
Least surprising story of the year. When I was made redundant in 2009 I had an interview at Comet - by the by, a depressing moment, going from £37k a year down to 30 hours in Comet but I was willing to take it. During the interview the manager was telling me all about how margins are essentially f
k all compared to just 10-15 years ago, staff make £10 commission on a Plasma TV at most and the majority of staff are low paid, part time and therefore lacking in depth knowledge.
He told me about how people use outlets like Comet just to see items in the flesh before buying them much cheaper on Amazon. He bluntly admitted there's no way they can compete with the internet and he said I'd need to 'keep people in the store and make sure they buy it here' and 'don't give them a chance to price check elsewhere.' I'm something of an electronics nerd and I've never bought anything in Comet in my life, he was impressed with my product knowledge but I think my reluctance to 'dont give them a chance to price check' was obvious in my body language.
After leaving his office I looked around the huge Comet store, saw more staff than customers on a Saturday afternoon and said to myself 'this place will be gone in 10 years.'
k all compared to just 10-15 years ago, staff make £10 commission on a Plasma TV at most and the majority of staff are low paid, part time and therefore lacking in depth knowledge.He told me about how people use outlets like Comet just to see items in the flesh before buying them much cheaper on Amazon. He bluntly admitted there's no way they can compete with the internet and he said I'd need to 'keep people in the store and make sure they buy it here' and 'don't give them a chance to price check elsewhere.' I'm something of an electronics nerd and I've never bought anything in Comet in my life, he was impressed with my product knowledge but I think my reluctance to 'dont give them a chance to price check' was obvious in my body language.
After leaving his office I looked around the huge Comet store, saw more staff than customers on a Saturday afternoon and said to myself 'this place will be gone in 10 years.'
Does administration have to lead to liquidation every time? I do lament the loss of jobs and the loss of choice on the high street every time a company like this goes to the wall. What riles me is the internet shoppers using the shops as a free library to view the products before buying online. This is evident in a local interior design shop where they have a polite notice asking internet shoppers to consider their conscience when looking through their fabric and wallcovering books (which the shop has to pay for) and then going on the internet to buy what they've selected. The only advantage the internet offers is a cheaper bottom line price but that is only at the expense of service and choice. Does anyone think that those on the end of a phone line at an internet retailer will be any better paid or knowledgeable when queries or problems arise?
anonymous said:
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Unless there are particular geographical factors that make some stores massively less competitive than others, then usually it's the actual business model that's failed. In this case, I'd be surprised is any Comet stores remain long-term, though some might stagger on for a while.anonymous said:
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Wiggle (bicycle on-line retailer) aren't perfect, but they have far better product information on their website than in almost any bike shop. And in Comet's case, I've never had decent advice from anyone there - I used to work there (back office) and I was always appalled at how little actual product knowledge there was in the stores.General Price said:
login access only.Any chance of a copy-paste of key message, please?
Halmyre said:
So what are Comet doing wrong that Currys are doing right? Or are Currys next to go? The branch nearest me never seems to be that busy.
Perhaps I'm getting my stores mixed up bit aren't Currys part of the Homebase and Argos group, which are presumably keeping them afloat?Pints said:
Halmyre said:
So what are Comet doing wrong that Currys are doing right? Or are Currys next to go? The branch nearest me never seems to be that busy.
Perhaps I'm getting my stores mixed up bit aren't Currys part of the Homebase and Argos group, which are presumably keeping them afloat?Pints said:
Perhaps I'm getting my stores mixed up bit aren't Currys part of the Homebase and Argos group, which are presumably keeping them afloat?
No, Currys is part of the Dixons Retail (formally DSGi) group. That includes PC World, Currys, Pixmania and formally Dixons in the UK. They have various outfits across Europe too. As expected Southern Europe is struggling but they're doing very well in the Nordic countries.Digga said:
Adrian W said:
Digga said:
Don't panic, like Buffet says, you should be greedy when markets are fearful - buy more. I'm long on Ratners vouchers. 
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