I remember when when I use to travel a lot, I would hit the Frys in Houston, Phoenix, San Jose, and Dallas just to name a few. Of course like most of you I mainly stayed in the Computer/Electronics section. It was my home away from home.
Radio Shack – What The Heck Happened?
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I had a love/hate relationship with Fry's. I loved the store size, unique decor and diversity of merchandise, but hated their oppressive security when leaving, their annoying return policy/ritual and the way memory was locked in a safe at the front of the store. Fry's was usually better stocked than Radio Shack for the items I needed, and they had "real" brands, unlike the Shack's Tandy house brand.
I frequented the Alice in Wonderland store in Woodland Hills, which was just behind where I worked, and the UFO store in Burbank. Shopping there was fun during the Halcyon Days, not so much when darkness was closing in.
Sales staff was usually a notch or so above the average Radio Shack (and yes, it's a pretty low notch). Seemed in any given store at any given time, there was one, and only one, salesperson with any reasonable degree of product and technical knowledge. I remember seeing in the Woodland Hills store, a large sign just inside the walkway to the employee area that said "I don't know, but let's find out".
I frequented the Alice in Wonderland store in Woodland Hills, which was just behind where I worked, and the UFO store in Burbank. Shopping there was fun during the Halcyon Days, not so much when darkness was closing in.
Sales staff was usually a notch or so above the average Radio Shack (and yes, it's a pretty low notch). Seemed in any given store at any given time, there was one, and only one, salesperson with any reasonable degree of product and technical knowledge. I remember seeing in the Woodland Hills store, a large sign just inside the walkway to the employee area that said "I don't know, but let's find out".
Loved the Fry's inventory - pretty much anything I needed computer & electronics -wise I could get the same day from Fry's and at a decent price. Hated the commission-based high pressure sales always interrupting my browsing. Even worse, they would see you take an item off the shelf, pull you to the side and write up that sales order to give to the cashier, as if they played any part in me researching and selecting the item I already knew I was going to buy walking into the store 
I was sad to see it go, if only for my own convenience, but Fry's had a long history of treating the customer pretty poorly and yeah..they found out. The rebate scheme was so brazen.
I was sad to see it go, if only for my own convenience, but Fry's had a long history of treating the customer pretty poorly and yeah..they found out. The rebate scheme was so brazen.
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
I usually stayed out of that section. I was in the tools or cabling/components.
I bought a Fluke 27 Meter there once, got a really good deal on it because they didn't know what it should cost as a display model with no box, I think I got it for 50% off.
For a brief period of time, they carried some amateur radio gear. They also stocked some of the Larsen antenna products for a while.
Yes, the staff were total hit or miss. I did my best to avoid them if possible.
I think Radio Shack's "Incredible Universe" store was an attempt to get some of the Fry's customer base, but it never happened. Never did get into one of the Incredible Universe stores.
I was talking with a friend recently about the Incredible Universe in Tempe - Fry's opened up in its original building and retained a lot of the original layout, shelving, look & feel etc. I found this cool video touring the store in 1994 and showed it to him, he got a kick out of seeing it:
And then Fry's moved in and gave it a makeover with....a golf theme lol. Which I guess makes sense for Arizona? There was another Fry's a little farther fom my house with a cool Aztec theme and it looked like a pyramid inside.
mmckenna
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I was at a conference across the street from that Fry's in Tempe years ago. It rained so hard that day the roof of the Fry's caved in.
There was one in San Jose that had the Pyramid theme inside.
Ugh. Inherited a Midland B&W TV from my oldest brother that didn't work. Pulled all the tubes, labeled where they came from, boxed them up and rode my bike the the RS. Set the box on the tester, bumped it and all the tubes fell out and broke. At 13 I couldn't afford to buy all new tubes so I cleaned up my mess and went back home Sad day.
mmckenna
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:sadtrombone:
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In my area during the declining years of Radio Shack, most of the items you went there for had the packaging taped or stapled back together, and the items inside were used - broken - missing parts, etc. As soon as the sales person learned that you weren't interested in a cell phone, they just stopped talking to you and walked away.
During that period my next door neighbor bought a digital camera at a Radio Shack near her workplace in Boston. She asked the store manager about the condition of the box, and the manager said that it was at the bottom of the shipment they received the day before and it was just cosmetic damage to the outer box - they sold fast and it was the last one in stock at the sale price. She questioned him, and he assured her that they would never put used or returned merchandise back in stock to sell as new. He said "that's against the law, Radio Shack would never risk damaging it's reputation by lying about something like that". She wished she had opened it right there to check, but had to run to catch a train.
My camera was very similar so she brought it over to my house so I could unbox it and set it up. Fingerprints all over the display screen and lens glass, no wrist strap, a flattened M&M stuck to the software CD, and sand in the box. The wrapper for the memory card was empty, but the card was in the camera. I put the card in my card reader... it was blank, but just for the heck of it I ran it through some recovery software. Recovered a dozens of pics of a family at the beach that were date stamped from the past summer. My neighbor looked at the pics on my screen and said "OMG! The guy in those pics is the store manager that sold me the camera!" She returned the camera, along with printed pics (I wish I had been there to see that). She wrote several letters to RS corporate but never got a response.
During that period my next door neighbor bought a digital camera at a Radio Shack near her workplace in Boston. She asked the store manager about the condition of the box, and the manager said that it was at the bottom of the shipment they received the day before and it was just cosmetic damage to the outer box - they sold fast and it was the last one in stock at the sale price. She questioned him, and he assured her that they would never put used or returned merchandise back in stock to sell as new. He said "that's against the law, Radio Shack would never risk damaging it's reputation by lying about something like that". She wished she had opened it right there to check, but had to run to catch a train.
My camera was very similar so she brought it over to my house so I could unbox it and set it up. Fingerprints all over the display screen and lens glass, no wrist strap, a flattened M&M stuck to the software CD, and sand in the box. The wrapper for the memory card was empty, but the card was in the camera. I put the card in my card reader... it was blank, but just for the heck of it I ran it through some recovery software. Recovered a dozens of pics of a family at the beach that were date stamped from the past summer. My neighbor looked at the pics on my screen and said "OMG! The guy in those pics is the store manager that sold me the camera!" She returned the camera, along with printed pics (I wish I had been there to see that). She wrote several letters to RS corporate but never got a response.
Radar detectors were notorious for being "borrowed". A customer would buy one for a pending road trip, use it, and return it when they came home. Telephones were another high-return item. But, we could never repack the phone as it was when new. For most electronic products, we'd slap a "premium warranty" sticker on the box to placate the next purchaser.
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They started to get sales people who didn't know flip about anything. There was an Amateur Radio operator working at the local Radio Shack back in the day's. You could walk into the store tell him what you need and he new what to get you.
About half the stuff I ever bought at Fry's was broken out of the box. I later had a conversation with a ex employee and he says they often put customer returns right back on the shelf and sell them again.Loved the Fry's inventory - pretty much anything I needed computer & electronics -wise I could get the same day from Fry's and at a decent price. Hated the commission-based high pressure sales always interrupting my browsing. Even worse, they would see you take an item off the shelf, pull you to the side and write up that sales order to give to the cashier, as if they played any part in me researching and selecting the item I already knew I was going to buy walking into the store
I was sad to see it go, if only for my own convenience, but Fry's had a long history of treating the customer pretty poorly and yeah..they found out. The rebate scheme was so brazen.
And let’s not forget in Phoenix if you searched just “Fry’s” you’d think they had the electronics stores all over town. To my dismay on one of my six weeks stints there in 2016, Fry’s is also a grocery store (or was, haven’t been back since).
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
Same guy started them. He sold off the supermarket chain and then started up the electronics chain.
There used to be a Fry's electronics around the corner from one of our sites. It was handy to drop in there and pick up what I needed, or at least do some window shopping, especially on company time...
Fond memories of the one in Sacramento! It used to be an Incredible Universe, which was opened by a former Tandy CEO. The address is 4100 Tandy Drive, funny enough. My memory is fuzzy, but not too far in the same vicinity by North Freeway Blvd was a corporate regional HQ for Radio Shack. I can't remember whether it was a central warehouse, but I do remember going there and getting an interview for a job at Radio Shack. I think after I found out employment was based on commission, I declined proceeding further.
mmckenna
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Yeah, I know the place you are talking about, right off I-80. That was the only one I saw, but never had time to stop in and check it out.
Fry's was bait and switch scam on somethings.
My first time they advertised a computer for a good low price. Decided to buy two (one for me and one for my dad). Drove over an hour to get to the store. I show the sales guy the ad and told him I wanted two.
He told me that the computer in the ad wasn't prebuilt, it was just package of components I would have to put together myself.
Of course he tried to talk me into buying the new and greatest already built computers. I almost walked out, I decided that I would take the DIY computers. The guy had to go around and gather all pieces for two computers from a cheat sheet. He took me up to the front of the store where another guy had to double check that everything was there. Then the second guy was trying to sell me on letting them build them for me for an incredible high price. I said no, I would do it myself. That's when he said there would be no warranty on the computers as I was building them myself.
I think I spent 3 to 4 hours in the store going around and around with them.
The computers were good computers, mine lasted up to the time to upgrade a few years later.
A few months later they opened a store close to me. I would buy software and other items but I never bought another computer from them.
Then there was the time I was going to buy a new TV, the sales person ignored me, he wasn't busy, I was the only customer in the department at the time. I told the person at the exit that I was ready to buy a TV and since the salesguy ignored me and I was taking my business elsewhere.
My first time they advertised a computer for a good low price. Decided to buy two (one for me and one for my dad). Drove over an hour to get to the store. I show the sales guy the ad and told him I wanted two.
He told me that the computer in the ad wasn't prebuilt, it was just package of components I would have to put together myself.
Of course he tried to talk me into buying the new and greatest already built computers. I almost walked out, I decided that I would take the DIY computers. The guy had to go around and gather all pieces for two computers from a cheat sheet. He took me up to the front of the store where another guy had to double check that everything was there. Then the second guy was trying to sell me on letting them build them for me for an incredible high price. I said no, I would do it myself. That's when he said there would be no warranty on the computers as I was building them myself.
I think I spent 3 to 4 hours in the store going around and around with them.
The computers were good computers, mine lasted up to the time to upgrade a few years later.
A few months later they opened a store close to me. I would buy software and other items but I never bought another computer from them.
Then there was the time I was going to buy a new TV, the sales person ignored me, he wasn't busy, I was the only customer in the department at the time. I told the person at the exit that I was ready to buy a TV and since the salesguy ignored me and I was taking my business elsewhere.
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
A common thing. There seemed to be two settings at Fry's:
Ignore the customer until they figure it out on their own or left.
Pester the customer until they bought the product or left.
There didn't seem to be a "medium" setting, just off and high.
While the selection was nice, the people that worked in the ones around me seemed to be specially selected to make customers lives a living hell the entire time they were in the store.
There was also an Incredible Universe location in my area, in Arlington. After it had been opened a few months, I went by to check it out. That was the most disorganized store I had seen. Items in no particular order by type or anything else. It was like when they got some new items, they'd place them out in the sales floor wherever there was an empty space. It was practically impossible to find anything specific unless you roamed the store & ran across where it had been left. That location also morphed into a Frys store when Tandy discontinued that type of stores.
It was cool as heck. Just a giant board with all kinds of different pin configurations. I think maybe if the tube glowed it was good? I honestly don't remember. Thanks for making me relive some childhood. Although my wife says I'm still a kid.
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