Abandoned - Circuit City

Before the war between Circuit City and Best Buy, Circuit City was the number one electronic store. In only a matter of years, the entire company went under leaving hundreds of stores abandoned.

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[ThrowItOnTheGrill]

You forgot one specific thing that Circuit City did, that accelerated their demise, and this was really, really dirty. They took their highest-paid wage people, laid them off, then offered them their jobs back - at starting wage. The people that did accept were extremely jaded and the ones that didn't, were replaced with people that should have been flipping burgers. It was not a good mix of floor employees.

[kristophermueller]

If you would like some former employee insight: I worked at the Circuit City in Springfield, IL around 2006-2007.

This was when HDMI cables first hit the market along with HDDVD, Blu-ray, PS3, complete with 720p/720i and 1080p/1080i plasma/LCD televisions.

While I was not on commission, we were still expected to have good sales numbers. I was the best of 8 floor employees with closing roughly $20k/ week in direct sales, I was also only 1 of 3 employees that knew how to set up a full entertainment system- such as audio receivers and tvs to 5.1/7.1/9.1 surround setups to several peripherals (game consoles, blu-ray, HDDVD, cable, computer) utilizing RCA, Composite, Component, Monster speaker wire, digital coaxial, optical fiber audio cable, DVI, and HDMI cables. There POS software was some shitty ms-dos proprietary abomination complete with all green lettering...

Despite all this, I was fired on the spot one day. Why? You ask.... because a regional manager was undercover posing as a shopper. Walking around with a random Best Buy brochure. I offered assistance, but he declined. I told him I would be in the area helping other customers if he needed anything.

I was fired because I didn't try to push him for sales.... I was fired for not badgering and annoying a customer until they bought some shit.... That store closed soon after.

[axiom]

How the heck did a Shack for Radios outlive a whole City of Circuits?

[tacticalmattfoley]

When Circuit City first opened, it was amazing for the era. Everyone wanted to go there for the car audio equipment and home stereo equipment. No other stores had anything like it.

[ThisisDanBell]

I actually went to the Circuit City featured in the news clip. I bought a television half off when they were closing. Great video!

[apseudonym]

3:29 i love that the entranceway is shaped like a plug. that's actually genius

[DeeJamari]

My Circuit City got turned into a Sports Authority.
When Sports Authority closed, it got turned into Burlington Coat House.

[mikeyllo]

This took me back down memory lane. I worked at Circuit City from 1999-2005, so I lived through many of these changes. So many memories.

[hotwax]

The decision to get rid of appliances was a big factor in their decline--they missed out on the housing boom, and thus significant revenue from appliance sales.

[deanprunier]

Was an employee that Opened the Circuit city in Everett wa.. Hired and trained weeks before the doors opened on customer service, products and how to push extended warranty sales. At first the needed quota of extended warranty sales was about 8 percent. Then 9 percent (and it grew as time went on).. If you didn't meet your quota your were called into the managers office for a "Meeting" and told/threatened to retrain and after 3 such visits the company required the manager to fire the employee. It became so unbearable alot of quality salesmen left. And the pressure to customers became an extreme issue also. I was offered a job by the owner of a local computer shop who liked my knowledge and sales ability and I left immediatly (after telling the Store Manager to shove his quotas and numbers up his ass)

[musicnerd]

Naming it "The City" was just stupid.

[futuremiIf]

We have multiple abandoned Circuit City's in my area and I barely remember when they were open. RIP.

[CoyoteSam]

The Source sucks. Need an iPhone accessory for way too much money? They got you. Like cramped, uncomfortably tight aisles? You better believe they got you. Need a bit of cable or wiring that isn't USB or HDMI? Get the Hell out, what do you think this is, a Radio Shack?

[QueenofSilence]

It's fascinating when you step back and look at it.
Technology as a whole has become a massive part of our everyday lives.

Electronics retailers are the best way to see this. They went from unique places were you could buy things that your neighbors might not have, to stores that aren't exactly impressive anymore.
We're used to being surrounded by screens, speakers/stereos, and computers. Technology in general doesn't have that mind-blowing magic that it used to.

It's very interesting when you take a moment to think about it.

[kittylynndale]

My local Circuit City was amazing!

My laptop died in the middle of finals week and I needed a replacement.

They closed before I could get there, but the next day, the manager himself met me outside the front doors with the laptop I had ordered. He had stayed late the night before and charged it and made sure everything worked so I wouldn’t lose any time prepping my final projects.

He even tossed in a bag of sodas and snacks that he’d bought on his own dime, along with a pack of CD-RWs, and bunch of popular CDs, and a bunch of new release movies.

Super nice guy, and I’m so happy that when CC closed he was able to achieve his dream of opening his own restaurant.

Just in case you’re reading, because I know you still feel loyal to CC- Hi Tony! Hope you had a great Christmas, and I’m glad you’re back safe from your mission trip!

[jeffdkillman]

There's still a huge abandoned Circuit City distribution center in my small Midwest town. Was a big blow to the local communities when the company went bankrupt.

[_PrimetimePranks]

The Circuit City stores I remember always had high pressure sales teams bothering me whenever I wanted to buy CDs.

[scarrmd]

I worked at circuit city for a couple months. The actual store I worked at was in this video on the WBAL clip. Management sucked and the store was about 20 years behind Best Buy. It may have been my worst retail job I ever had.

[VashtiPerry]

😂 I never knew Car max and Circuit City were siblings.


So funny

[Larry]

Could you possibly look into the fall of Woolworth's as well? Always fascinated by them.