Fry’s Electronics Goes Out of Business, Permanently Closes All Stores Nationwide

[Tsing]

Image: Nicolas Sanguinetti



Fry’s Electronics is officially going out of business after 36 years. The somber news has been confirmed by the once-popular retail chain, which cleared out its website for a goodbye message explaining that it had ceased operations and began winding down its business today. Fry’s is blaming “changes in the retail industry” and the coronavirus pandemic for its closure.



“After nearly 36 years in business as the one-stop-shop and online resource for high-tech professionals across nine states and 31 stores, Fry’s Electronics, Inc. (“Fry’s” or “Company”), has made the difficult decision to shut down its operations and close its business permanently as a result of changes in the retail industry and the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic,” the message reads. “The Company will implement the shut down through an...

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[Peter_Brosdahl]

Never saw one of their stores until this pic. We've got a local brewery with the same UFO crashing into the building theme except ours is more of a space mural idea. BTW great brewery!

 

[Peter_Brosdahl]

I will says Fry's started windind down before COVID-19 happened. I remember more than a few black-Friday's going by and noticing their inventory dwindling over the years but I only started checking for their stuff maybe 4 or 5 years ago.

 

[Burticus]

A million years ago I worked at Computer City, the parent company (Tandy) also had Incredible Universe. Almost (if not all) of those IU stores became Fry's.

 

[DrezKill]

Fry's going away?! DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG
The end of an era. Although with the way the last 10+ years were, I kinda expected them to be going away at some point. Still, sad it actually happened. Been ages since I been to one myself, but I'm not really one for brick-and-mortar stores (aside from occassional visits to Micro Center, and very rarely Best Buy).

 

[Niner51]

Never shopped there in store or online. Still sad to see a long running chain end, but it's becoming the norm.

 

[Dan_D]

Fry's has been a shell of its former self for several years now. However, the last two years have been the worst. The shelves have been bare for all that time. It's been a joke.

 

[rat]

Good riddance.

They were so shameless about bundling incompatible CPUs with Motherboards and putting returned NON WORKING merchandise back on the shelves marked "New."

 

[Dan_D]

Good riddance.

They were so shameless about bundling incompatible CPUs with Motherboards and putting returned NON WORKING merchandise back on the shelves marked "New."

This is absolutely true. Fry's earned a bad reputation for doing that kind of crap as far back as the 1990's. The placing of defective goods back on the shelf was something they did curtail slightly in the later years, but they were famous for it up until their shelves were completely barren. As for bundling, that's just sheer incompetence. Bundling is something a lot of retailers try to do to varying degrees of success.

 

[LazyGamer]

This is absolutely true. Fry's earned a bad reputation for doing that kind of crap as far back as the 1990's. The placing of defective goods back on the shelf was something they did curtail slightly in the later years, but they were famous for it up until their shelves were completely barren. As for bundling, that's just sheer incompetence. Bundling is something a lot of retailers try to do to varying degrees of success.

Just have to compare them to Microcenter, right?

Night and day.


I did have some good experiences with Fry's over the last couple of decades. I did have a few less good ones too.

I'm also somewhat surprised that they failed, but I think that my surprise is rooted in not being a 'normal' consumer, and not understanding normal consumers. I worked retail once and I hated it with a passion.

 

[Dan_D]

Just have to compare them to Microcenter, right?

Night and day.


I did have some good experiences with Fry's over the last couple of decades. I did have a few less good ones too.

I'm also somewhat surprised that they failed, but I think that my surprise is rooted in not being a 'normal' consumer, and not understanding normal consumers. I worked retail once and I hated it with a passion.

I worked at Best Buy and Comp USA twice each. I was at Comp USA up through some of the year where they went out of business. Circuit City and Tiger Direct are part of the Comp USA story, and I had friends involved in some of that mess too. As a result, I have an understanding of how electronics retail works. I saw signs of similar bad business decisions at Fry's and its no surprise to me that they went under. It's actually more surprising Best Buy has rebounded as much as it has considering it didn't see the changes in the market until they were in trouble. For awhile there, I thought they were in danger of swirling down the drain.

 

[LazyGamer]

It's actually more surprising Best Buy has rebounded as much as it has considering it didn't see the changes in the market until they were in trouble.

Best Buy has managed to maneuver well enough. I don't have much respect for them outside of recognizing their survival, but they've done a fair bit of image and presentation management.

I'm still not the person that purposefully visits Best Buy except as an available distraction and I definitely know better than to actually shop there, but they've earned a bit of my business over the years.

For me, their only attraction is convenience. Same with Microcenter really, but no one is beating Newegg, let alone Amazon.

I'm somewhat surprised that retail outlets haven't simply become showrooms that act as physical extensions of those outlets. I could totally see Newegg, for example, putting some of their stock on the shelf in retailers just so that people can walk in and buy it if they like.

I think Fry's tried to do something about that, but unlike Incredible Universe and Circuit City and Best Buy, they never really had a good retail experience. They just existed, until they didn't, and their stores were always notably 'trashy'.

 

[Dan_D]

I'm somewhat surprised that retail outlets haven't simply become showrooms that act as physical extensions of those outlets. I could totally see Newegg, for example, putting some of their stock on the shelf in retailers just so that people can walk in and buy it if they like.

Honestly, that's probably the future of most retail at some point. However, at the moment the need isn't there. Best Buy, Microcenter etc. are doing it for Amazon and Newegg. Until there is a need, they won't bother incurring the cost.

 

[Niner51]

Best Buy Layoffs

Seems Best Buy is starting to feel the hurt as well. I shop there occasionally, but I did more during the height of the pandemic only because they were competitive in pricing at that time.

 

[Dan_D]

Best Buy Layoffs

Seems Best Buy is starting to feel the hurt as well. I shop there occasionally, but I did more during the height of the pandemic only because they were competitive in pricing at that time.

I thought they were doing better than that, but it's no surprise, especially given the state of retail right now with the closures and all that crap.

 

[Grimlakin]

Problem is retail can't keep things in stock either and they don't have the purchasing power of someone like an Amazon or Walmart to go in and buy up all available stock period. The moves and shakers are moving and shaking and business partners are getting stock before retailers.

I'm betting if you looked at ownership percentages companies that have regular stock coming in have partial ownership with the people that are shipping them that self same stock.

I don't KNOW this. But it's a gut feeling.

 

[Brian_B]

I don't think Best Buy's situation has much to do with GPU/Console availability. I'm sure it's not helping at all, but Best Buy is certainly diverse enough that GPU/Console sales are a pretty small portion of their overall revenue.

For BB, I think it's just the overall COVID retail that's hit them. It's really hard to push things like refrigerators and TVs online when your client base is used to the brick & mortar experience, but can't get into the stores. I don't know if it's done so everywhere, but the BB's in our area have pivoted to almost half of their retail space devoted to large appliances, and the other half is roughly split between cell phones & headphones, Home Theater / TVs (but very slim on audio, mostly just TVs), laptops and AIOs (very few desktop systems, and maybe one shelf for Apple), and associated other electronics (maybe one shelf each: cameras, drones, consoles & games, random PC hardware, etc). CDs/DVDs are down to maybe one aisle, whereas I can remember like 20 years ago that would be half the store.

I don't know the numbers, but I wonder how their Geeksquad side is doing. I would bet it's done well since the work from home and more people are having to rely on their own tech support means, rather than just being able to drop it off at IT down the hall.

 

[LazyGamer]

For BB, I think it's just the overall COVID retail that's hit them. It's really hard to push things like refrigerators and TVs online when your client base is used to the brick & mortar experience, but can't get into the stores. I don't know if it's done so everywhere, but the BB's in our area have pivoted to almost half of their retail space devoted to large appliances, and the other half is roughly split between cell phones & headphones, Home Theater / TVs (but very slim on audio, mostly just TVs), laptops and AIOs (very few desktop systems, and maybe one shelf for Apple), and associated other electronics (maybe one shelf each: cameras, drones, consoles & games, random PC hardware, etc). CDs/DVDs are down to maybe one aisle, whereas I can remember like 20 years ago that would be half the store.

On the nose... though they do have their 'Magnolia' stores that get into... decent mid-fi? It's hard to call something sold in Best Buy 'hi-fi'. Perhaps I'm just being elitist.

I don't know the numbers, but I wonder how their Geeksquad side is doing. I would bet it's done well since the work from home and more people are having to rely on their own tech support means, rather than just being able to drop it off at IT down the hall.

If they're not doing well, it's a management failure, and I'd put the odds on them not doing well. I sincerely doubt that they'd be able to keep experienced staff. Competent staff would be a challenge, but that's just not a job that anyone really wants to do, so few competent people with real experience would be willing to take what Best Buy would be willing to pay. I know I'd need six figures to even consider that line of work, and well, that's probably twice what the store manager makes.

 

[Brian_B]

On the nose... though they do have their 'Magnolia' stores that get into... decent mid-fi? It's hard to call something sold in Best Buy 'hi-fi'. Perhaps I'm just being elitist.

There is one BB near here (maybe 100 miles up the road?) that has a Magnolia, but that's only a small corner of the store where they have a fake living room set up with like... 5 sets of speakers and maybe as many receivers you can switch between. It's less impressive than Crutchfield. Most around us have Pacific Sales though, which is mid/high-end kitchen stuff (Viking gas ranges, etc)