2019 Retailers in trouble thread

[Bradgate]

My tip this time last year was House of Fraser. It’s never nice to be proved right when people’s livelihoods are involved.

Agree about Homebase, I’m amazed they haven’t gone bust already.

Currys PCW deserves to go bust. Badly run stores with completely useless poorly trained know-nothing idiot staff who are only interested in selling useless warranties. I don’t think they will, though, as they have an effective monopoly on selling white goods & domestic appliances to people who don’t want to buy online in towns with no JL, which is most of them.

My tip for 2019 is one of the big furniture chains. Harveys have a reputation for appalling customer service.

[kev1974]

bloomen said:

I find the whole Currys process irritating as hell. I want to go into somewhere, find something, pay for it, leave. I don't want to have to find someone strolling around, ask permission to buy something and have them wander away and back to find out they ain't got it.

I've no idea who set that process up, but they're tts. It's the least appealing way to shop possible.

I guess they mirrored their process on the equally hellish Apple Store experience. Bizarrely though a lot of people seem to like it in the Apple case, #becauseapple I guess. I've always found it awful, having to track down a free arrogant millennial staff member, beg them to sell you whatever it is you want, stand around for ten minutes while they try to work their tiny hand held till, decline Apple Care Plus, triple check the email address you've given them because there's no way you're getting a paper receipt out of that shop, then wait 25 minutes still standing by one of the tables for the millennials to get around to finding it on the shelves out the back and eventually bring it to you.

[bloomen]

kev1974 said:

I guess they mirrored their process on the equally hellish Apple Store experience

I will never own an Apple anything, but I guess every physical encounter their zombie army has with their controllers may as well reinforce who's boss in that relationship.

[Sixpackpert]

bloomen said:

kev1974 said:

I guess they mirrored their process on the equally hellish Apple Store experience

I will never own an Apple anything, but I guess every physical encounter their zombie army has with their controllers may as well reinforce who's boss in that relationship.

Only ever bought one Apple device from an Apple store, and it was quite cringeworthy to be fair.

All other Apple devices have been purchased from John Lewis. Extra year warranty, no hassle, no ballbag using the words excellent or awesome every 2 minutes during the purchase.

Still like Apple stuff but they need something new now, desperately. Rehashing what they have been selling for years is starting to wear thin.

[toastyhamster]

ambuletz said:

I think argos are still relevant. being able to check stock AND reserve it is a big benefit to me. reserving is free and i know ill be able to pick that item up at any point during my day. I actually prefer going to argos to pick up a video game on release day than having to go to the likes of GAME because

- there wont be a massive line in argos, unlike GAME.
- someone in GAME won't try and sell me offers for a video game we both know is st and nobody would ever want
- i dont need to create an account
- i can go at any time during that day to pick it up and dont need to speak to anyone.
- more reliable than ordering it online and the game not turning up on release day.

Yup, this. Bought Red Dead 2 on release day from Argos, no queues and took all of 2 minutes from entering the shop. Apparently they had a couple of hundred in stock and were already a quarter through them (lunch ish), so that's a fair bit of business right there.

Won't touch PC World/Currys with a barge pole. Lack of stock, low skilled staff (mostly), epic amounts of product packaging, dodgy upselling tactics.

[zarjaz1991]

ambuletz said:

I think argos are still relevant. being able to check stock AND reserve it is a big benefit to me. reserving is free and i know ill be able to pick that item up at any point during my day. I actually prefer going to argos to pick up a video game on release day than having to go to the likes of GAME because

- there wont be a massive line in argos, unlike GAME.
- someone in GAME won't try and sell me offers for a video game we both know is st and nobody would ever want
- i dont need to create an account
- i can go at any time during that day to pick it up and dont need to speak to anyone.
- more reliable than ordering it online and the game not turning up on release day.

Agreed. I liked Argos long before Sainsburys took them over, but the offering is even better now and seems capable of standing up in the modern 'era'.

[Sixpackpert]

Went to Curries/PCW as we needed a couple of new keyboards for work. Of all on display they had maybe 40% in stock at the store. Managed to pick 2 that 'would do'. Went to the till, asked for a VAT invoice, was taken to another till to be dealt with by someone that had absolutely no conversational skills. It took 25 minutes for him to produce me with a VAT invoice. At one point he disappeared for 5 minutes to retrieve the invoice from a printer that was nowhere near his terminal. Woeful experience.

[Challo]

bloomen said:

Whoever's been running Argos deserves a pat on the balance sheet. Their alignment with Ebay was a wise move too.

I find the whole Currys process irritating as hell. I want to go into somewhere, find something, pay for it, leave. I don't want to have to find someone strolling around, ask permission to buy something and have them wander away and back to find out they ain't got it.

I've no idea who set that process up, but they're tts. It's the least appealing way to shop possible.

Edited by bloomen on Saturday 29th December 17:59

That EBay move is great. Number of items I have bought on eBay and collected in the Argos outlet in the local Sainsbury’s store. Really handy when it’s a large item and I know I won’t be in.

[iphonedyou]

Lemming Train said:

No-one under the age of 40 listens to commercial radio.

That's patent bks though. And you know it.

So why post it?

[bod27]

Just bought a TV from Currys, it was in stock at the 3 nearest stores. Chose the one nearest to Ikea in Leeds , I knew which one I wanted , went in , asked them if they had one, yes they did, said I wanted it, just said no when asked if I wanted extra cover, didnt give them my email address etc , went and paid for it at till, 5 mins later it was brought out and taken to my car for me. All in alll a stress free and easy transaction. Must admit Argos have upped their game in the last few years ,the instore staff at out local store managed to get me a Gopro gimbal the next day, the one that Argos on line had sent was not working as it should and came in an opened box. Argos online said that they didn’t have a new one available and I would just have to return it for a credit!

[iphonedyou]

bod27 said:

Just bought a TV from Currys, it was in stock at the 3 nearest stores. Chose the one nearest to Ikea in Leeds , I knew which one I wanted , went in , asked them if they had one, yes they did, said I wanted it, just said no when asked if I wanted extra cover, didnt give them my email address etc , went and paid for it at till, 5 mins later it was brought out and taken to my car for me. All in alll a stress free and easy transaction. Must admit Argos have upped their game in the last few years ,the instore staff at out local store managed to get me a Gopro gimbal the next day, the one that Argos on line had sent was not working as it should and came in an opened box. Argos online said that they didn’t have a new one available and I would just have to return it for a credit!

I've bought three TVs from Currys in the last year and each was a very pleasant experience.

[bod27]

Just bought a TV from Currys, it was in stock at the 3 nearest stores. Chose the one nearest to Ikea in Leeds , I knew which one I wanted , went in , asked them if they had one, yes they did, said I wanted it, just said no when asked if I wanted extra cover, didnt give them my email address etc , went and paid for it at till, 5 mins later it was brought out and taken to my car for me. All in alll a stress free and easy transaction. Must admit Argos have upped their game in the last few years ,the instore staff at out local store managed to get me a Gopro gimbal the next day, the one that Argos on line had sent was not working as it should and came in an opened box. Argos online said that they didn’t have a new one available and I would just have to return it for a credit!

[MartG]

bloomen said:

I find the whole Currys process irritating as hell. I want to go into somewhere, find something, pay for it, leave. I don't want to have to find someone strolling around, ask permission to buy something and have them wander away and back to find out they ain't got it.

I've no idea who set that process up, but they're tts. It's the least appealing way to shop possible.

It's as if they deliberately set up a business where people can look at items to help them make up their minds what they want to buy before going and ordering one online somewhere, usually at lower cost than Currys ( if they have stock )

[PF62]

zarjaz1991 said:

Agreed. I liked Argos long before Sainsburys took them over, but the offering is even better now and seems capable of standing up in the modern 'era'.

It isn't there yet.

Their offering is good where they have moved their store into a Sainsburys. However my local Argos is an old 'stand alone' store so only open 9 to 5.30. That is a fat lot of good if you commute and have left before they open and are back after they close, so Amazon who have lockers open 24 hours nearby are the better offering.

[jakesmith]

bloomen said:

Whoever's been running Argos deserves a pat on the balance sheet. Their alignment with Ebay was a wise move too.

I find the whole Currys process irritating as hell. I want to go into somewhere, find something, pay for it, leave. I don't want to have to find someone strolling around, ask permission to buy something and have them wander away and back to find out they ain't got it.

I've no idea who set that process up, but they're tts. It's the least appealing way to shop possible.

Edited by bloomen on Saturday 29th December 17:59

If you saw some of the brazen theft that takes place it would blow your mind. When I worked at their head office many moons ago we had access to the security alerts which showed stills of thefts.

There was a couple who took a washer dryer, plenty lifting up and taking large screen TVs, a delightful chap who would go into a store and threaten staff with a hypodermic needle and just walk out with what he could pick up

The stores sacked all their security staff as the cost was greater than the shrinkage but it does explain the lack of boxed product on shop floor

I was in The Hague a few weeks back and went to an electrical store, TVs and laptops piled as high as the ceiling

[king arthur]

ambuletz said:

I think argos are still relevant. being able to check stock AND reserve it is a big benefit to me. reserving is free and i know ill be able to pick that item up at any point during my day. I actually prefer going to argos to pick up a video game on release day than having to go to the likes of GAME because

- there wont be a massive line in argos, unlike GAME.
- someone in GAME won't try and sell me offers for a video game we both know is st and nobody would ever want
- i dont need to create an account
- i can go at any time during that day to pick it up and dont need to speak to anyone.
- more reliable than ordering it online and the game not turning up on release day.

Now you mention them, surely GAME must be hanging on for dear life?

[MartG]

king arthur said:

Now you mention them, surely GAME must be hanging on for dear life?

They'll last as long as grannies with no computers keep buying games for their grandkids

[iwantagta]

jakesmith said:

I was in The Hague a few weeks back

Who's been dabbling in a bit of genocide then? tut tut tut.

I think Mothercare may be in trouble this year.

[bloomen]

jakesmith said:

If you saw some of the brazen theft that takes place it would blow your mind.

It doesn't have to be out on the shelves. There should be a dedicated sales section with all the stuff ready to go behind a counter where you go after looking at the display bit. Most of the time I don't need anything displayed to me.

Cut the goons strolling around by 50 or more per cent and set them to actual work.

[jayymannon]

Superdry is my tip.

They seem to be one of those brands that became a fad and got very popular very quickly. Every second person seemed to be wearing some kind of Superdry clothing.

It may just be my perception (or the fact that I'm getting older) but the fad seems to have worn off and their stores always look quiet. It feels as though I rarely see people wearing Superdry anymore.