NEWS: Tweeter to shut 49 stores, lay off 650
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I think it's a shame. We don't have Tweeters in Colorado but we do have Ultimate Electronics which has been working its way out of bankruptcy.
Analysts have said that the UE model doesn't work. What I know, is that their knowledge and service has always been above the big box retailers, and their prices the same while carrying higher tier products overall.
Analysts have said that the UE model doesn't work. What I know, is that their knowledge and service has always been above the big box retailers, and their prices the same while carrying higher tier products overall.
I wonder if our local Tweeter is on the list. It's very near BB and seems to be near empty most of the time. They have great products, salesmen, and prices; but I don't know if that's enough.
I noticed the Pioneer 8G Show mentioned Tweeter as part of their plan...
Ken
I noticed the Pioneer 8G Show mentioned Tweeter as part of their plan...
Ken
They made some poor product line decisions in my opinion. When you carry similar lines to the rest of the companies you are competing with, it makes fighting for customers very difficult. The only unique audio product lines I can recall were Polk and Focal. Neither of which are special enough to carry your business.
Also many of their promotions were not attractive. Getting a discount on Bose when you purchase a TV is not appealing to many midfi shoppers.
Also many of their promotions were not attractive. Getting a discount on Bose when you purchase a TV is not appealing to many midfi shoppers.
Don't know about you guys, but the sales people at Tweeter drove me nuts and I haven't been in one for a couple of years. Worse than car salesmen...as soon as anyone walked in the door one of them attached himself like a parasite and then would not leave even when you said "just looking" for the tenth time. Like I was going to pick up one of those RPTVs and run for the door?
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Kinda discouraging, although I'm no fan of pressured sales tactics. I like to support local brick and mortars as much as possible...
kinda weird how sales tax is charged in most states, but not on-line in most cases...maybe they don't want to deal with it, but seems like your local economy is punished, even if the sales clerks get under $10/hour...
kinda weird how sales tax is charged in most states, but not on-line in most cases...maybe they don't want to deal with it, but seems like your local economy is punished, even if the sales clerks get under $10/hour...
Always sadened to see competition shrink. Guess the business model of the big box stores is just too strong. But once the competition is gone, they will maintain (or inprove) their cost advantage but their price advantage will lessen for the consumer. Only the internet will keep them in some sort of check but for all I know they will corner that market as well.
It's tough as something moves from a speciality to a commodity. I think that is what is happening to HDTV.
Cheers,
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Gary
It's tough as something moves from a speciality to a commodity. I think that is what is happening to HDTV.
Cheers,
Gary
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837 Posts
I used to work for one of the ORIGINAL Tweeter ETc. stores in Boston. I saw this coming in the late 1990's when they wanted to buy Bryn Mar, Hi Fi Buys along with a host of other chain stores. They expanded too fast in a market that changed too quickly.
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They may only be closing the Kingwood store for Houston They may be moving a lot of close out merchandise there I believe the one in the Woodlands is staying open. I think they may be closing all the Dallas stores.
The Woodlands group and the former FM1960 group have all be great people, and they work hard to solve problems. It is very rare to find people of that quality in the TV business.
They may only be closing the Kingwood store for Houston They may be moving a lot of close out merchandise there I believe the one in the Woodlands is staying open. I think they may be closing all the Dallas stores.
The Woodlands group and the former FM1960 group have all be great people, and they work hard to solve problems. It is very rare to find people of that quality in the TV business.
And for those who don't mind playing the lottery with already opened products, there will always be Fry's Electronics.
What killed me about the CompUSA thing is that I walked into the one near me that was shutting down, and they couldn't have been serious. Everything was marked up to MSRP so they could mark it back down to street price. There were very few actual deals to be had.
The Tweeter next door to them is having a store closing sale, too. They actually had some decent deals on high end speakers for car and home, but nothing in the way of televisions which is the my next big ticket item. Similar story to CompUSA, mark up to mark back down.
The worst thing about big box stores going out of business is the footprint they leave behind. It should have never been legal to build stores that large with their sprawling parking lots. Now there will be a giant empty space no one can afford to rent surrounded by an equally large paved surface that does nothing but radiate heat and prevent rain water from soaking into the ground. At least the Tweeter was reasonably sized. The CompUSA... Well, unless the Best Buy immediately adjacent decides it needs twice the space...
And for those who don't mind playing the lottery with already opened products, there will always be Fry's Electronics.
What killed me about the CompUSA thing is that I walked into the one near me that was shutting down, and they couldn't have been serious. Everything was marked up to MSRP so they could mark it back down to street price. There were very few actual deals to be had.
The Tweeter next door to them is having a store closing sale, too. They actually had some decent deals on high end speakers for car and home, but nothing in the way of televisions which is the my next big ticket item. Similar story to CompUSA, mark up to mark back down.
The worst thing about big box stores going out of business is the footprint they leave behind. It should have never been legal to build stores that large with their sprawling parking lots. Now there will be a giant empty space no one can afford to rent surrounded by an equally large paved surface that does nothing but radiate heat and prevent rain water from soaking into the ground. At least the Tweeter was reasonably sized. The CompUSA... Well, unless the Best Buy immediately adjacent decides it needs twice the space...
According to this Business Week article it is reason is Walmart. They are taking a large share of the electronic sales, and are targetting the lucrative flat screen business. This shift has impacted all of the electronic chains, even #1 Best Buy.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18274443/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18274443/
You gotta wonder how much Costco, etc, hurt Tweeter. Even with the new return policy -- 90 days is three times more than you get elsewhere.
Yeah, sometimes the salesman were a little pushy -- but those guys knew the stuff and could answer any question. I hope they survive.
You gotta wonder how much Costco, etc, hurt Tweeter. Even with the new return policy -- 90 days is three times more than you get elsewhere.
Yeah, sometimes the salesman were a little pushy -- but those guys knew the stuff and could answer any question. I hope they survive.
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Let's get real - except for the folks like us that hang-out in AV forums, the rest of the world buys:
A) The cheapest one (They have their credit cards maxed)
B) The most expensive one (They also have maxed credit cards, but they drive a BMW)
C) The one they think matches their furniture (It also matches their Bose system)
D) The one doing the most recent advertising (They wish they could afford the Bose system)
A) The cheapest one (They have their credit cards maxed)
B) The most expensive one (They also have maxed credit cards, but they drive a BMW)
C) The one they think matches their furniture (It also matches their Bose system)
D) The one doing the most recent advertising (They wish they could afford the Bose system)
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46 Posts
I always liked Tweeter, but there prices were always higher than the closest competition. And with a Sears and CC right near by in our town they always lost out. I went in there looked at a TV years ago, went next door to CC and it was cheaper, went to Sears and there's was a hair higher than CC but less than Tweeter. I ended up telling the Sears Associate that I could get a better deal across the street at CC and they lowered there price to a hair below CC and I bought it.
Now though you can get LCD's and Plasma's at Target and WallyWorld for much less than most places. While the quality may be less than CC or BB most people will never care or notice. Not everyone goes out looking for the best picture quality or sound, they just look at it in store and buy it. Normally the cheapest one. Some will go up a model or price just to think they are getting better quality but most will never notice the difference. Sad really.
Now though you can get LCD's and Plasma's at Target and WallyWorld for much less than most places. While the quality may be less than CC or BB most people will never care or notice. Not everyone goes out looking for the best picture quality or sound, they just look at it in store and buy it. Normally the cheapest one. Some will go up a model or price just to think they are getting better quality but most will never notice the difference. Sad really.
Thats typical when an asset liquidation company takes over a closing business. They buy the store and all its fixtures, stock, etc and mark it all up to MSRP and start "discounting" from there..the longer they hold onto the items..the more they are discounted
Thats typical when an asset liquidation company takes over a closing business. They buy the store and all its fixtures, stock, etc and mark it all up to MSRP and start "discounting" from there..the longer they hold onto the items..the more they are discounted
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