The Decline of Fry's Electronics...What Happened?

To the disappointment of many, Fry's Electronics has announced that they will be permanently shutting down all their stores. This video talks about the decline of the chain of electronics stores and theorizes where things went wrong.

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Company Declines:
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[EdmundKempersDartboard]

Browsing Amazon just isn't the same as loitering for hours in a Fry's, drooling over the things you can't afford.

[EdgarVerona]

Yeah, last time I walked into a Fry's I saw that exact same experience: a nearly empty store, with some crappy items on the almost-barren shelves and a couple of people walking around absent mindedly. It felt like the store had already shut down, and they had just forgotten to lock the doors so a couple of people randomly wandered in.

[tac]

Fry's was like Disneyland for Geeks. I frequented the Manhattan Beach store, as it was just a couple of miles from work. We'd often make a run for parts. The good ol days!

[bircharbor]

Genuinely, my dad used to wow me with stories about frys. it was his favorite store, and he took me there as a kid and I was wowed. I stopped by two years ago and it broke my heart. Ill miss you nerd heaven :(

[JustBlazeIt]

Man Fry's was such a dope store back in early to mid 2000s, RIP

[ArynRozelle]

Former fry's employee here... I quit over 8 years ago and even then, I saw it coming. At least I got lifetime friends and a spouse out of my time there ;)

[patrickcarrillo]

I feel like the consignment model was the reason why Fry's ultimately failed because 99% of suppliers hate that model and most don't even bother to work with stores that do that

[dcooper]

The shelves had been bare for some time. When you asked an employee if they were about to close, they would say we are getting ready to reorganize the store. I heard that explanation several times.

[arh]

The Fry's flyer in the Friday paper was like the Sunday comics for computer geeks. I'll miss that place.

[erikkovacs]

They're such liars. They said "Oh don't worry about the empty shelves we're just switching suppliers, we'll be back in no time". That was 1.5 years ago.

[stampscapes]

Miss the good old days of Fry's. Maybe the closest thing to a "toy store" feeling I'll have as an adult. Was like the Toy's R Us for grown ups. Used to go there and browse for hours --and buy too. Bought a lot of media, cameras, and blank CD's and DVD's. Always looked forward to getting that Fry's ad in the paper every week too.

[TheRealHamsterfist]

I worked there through college in Arizona and I have to say, I knew they weren't going to last for too long. The management was amateur level, the work culture was very pushy, and it seemed like they were trying to rely on a cultist mindset to keep employees. I had moved to Arizona for school, and the manager had the audacity to ask me "this company puts clothes on your back and food in your belly. What's more important to you, school or your job?" They were shocked when I said "school." I certainly didn't move to the desert to work at Fry's! This was back in 1999.

[votekyle]

Visited Fry’s in Austin December 2019. It was like visiting your grandparent in a nursing home.

[CZsWorld]

This one hurts the most. Not only was it a great place to go to pick up cheap hard drives, but the decorations made it a perfect spot to play Pokemon Go.

[sh_claire]

Fry's was looking to be at deaths door by mid 2010s. Shelves were already empty, employees were standing around and did not know their products, yet were pushy and clearly paid on commission. It felt uncomfortable to be there. They made online shopping in the comfort of your own home feel like the better experience.

[TheMountainLynx]

Having witnessed it during the year I spent as a supervisor at Fry's, another huge factor was that they structured their departments to be in competition with each other; the same mistake that killed Sears. The cutthroat sales environment was what necessitated the shift to consignment model in their inventory, and the subsequent lack of stock on the shelves is what ultimately led to their collapse.

[CHEFPKR]

Frys was where my dad took me on the weekend to look around at all the gadgets, my friends and I bought Bawls energy drinks from there for LANs, so many parts purchased. Good times.

[The_Horizon]

The closest Fry's electronics location to me is just 5 minutes away from a Microcenter with far better deals, which probably explains alot of it

[catman]

Fry's was so special that we got a Fry-day episode of Company Man.

[Sgvtm]

It feels like a part of my childhood just died. Those were the great ol days. This is right up there with tower records and miller’s outpost closing. No words.