Radio Shack Shares at $2. The Slide Continues

[K4JC]

I was working for Lafayette Radio Electronics when they started going belly up in 1980. For many decades they were a chief competitor to Radio Shack and carried a lot of the same kinds of stuff that RS did. Laffalot also carried their own brands. By the late '70s Lafayette had become more oriented toward home stereo gear, dropping a lot of the hobbyist type products and focusing on brands other than their own. Most people point to that as the reason Lafayette went under (plus the economy was terrible.)

I see Radio Shack following a similar path. When was the last time you saw an "Archer" or "Realistic" branded product? Remember when you'd get the latest RS catalog and drool over the neat stuff you wanted but couldn't afford? People used to have a specific reason to visit RS. Now most people visit just because they happen to be in the mall. I'm pretty sure the average cell phone consumer doesn't immediately consider RS when they're in the market for the latest and greatest. Maybe we as hams do, but I'd bet if you asked 10 people at random where they'd go for a new phone, you'd hear, "Verizon store," "Sprint store," "AT&T store," and maybe some online retailer, but rarely would RS spring to mind. So The Shack is fighting for cell phone market share but not gaining much ground, ergo it's not surprising that their stock has fallen so low. Honestly, the only reason I go to Radio Shack anymore is because I happen to be in the mall, and then I'm only looking for super deals on clearance items (and chuckling when an employee changes my request for resistors into a sales pitch for a phone!)

[AC4WY]

Well, Rat Shack has tried to change with the times, if not in the way most of us would like. The Battery Club days are gone and are not coming back, I fear. 

That said, I'm basically OK with what is left. The local mall store has SOME parts. It is nice to be able to buy the simple things I might need on short notice like a coax connector, etc. and not have to wait for delivery. And, on my last visit, I was surprised to note the store had increased its parts inventory...

[NK7Z]

Well, Rat Shack has tried to change with the times, if not in the way most of us would like. The Battery Club days are gone and are not coming back, I fear. 

That said, I'm basically OK with what is left. The local mall store has SOME parts. It is nice to be able to buy the simple things I might need on short notice like a coax connector, etc. and not have to wait for delivery. And, on my last visit, I was surprised to note the store had increased its parts inventory...

I have heard that RS will be attempting to move into the hobby business again, not just Cell Phones...  I have noted an increase in Adreno kits, see: http://www.radioshack.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=arduino&origkw=adreno&sr=1.  I hope they stay in business long enough to make it back to where they were a decade ago...  I suspect that being a cell phone store is not going to put food on the table for the shareholders...

[K2ADK]

Radio Shack is another victim of Verizon's selfishness and of its own managerial lack of direction.  I'm very concerned about this trend, because I rely on RS for cables, connectors, batteries, and such.

If anyone who works for Radio Shack is reading, here are some suggestions.

Start selling radios again.  Car radios.  Satellite radios; internet radios; HD FM / AM radios.
Get out of the cell phone business.  Best Buy has shown that it leads nowhere.
Get into sound design.  Do consulting in homes for people who want the best sound systems available, and install them.

That's a start.

Emmett
K2ADK