When I saw the news that Radio Shack is closing over a thousand stores, I assumed our neighborhood Radio Shack was on the list. Sure enough, when I saw it on the list, I was not surprised, but felt a bit of nostalgic sadness.
Not that I am an avid Radio Shack customer, But Radio Shack has held a peculiar place in American retail. Our local radio shack opened when I was in Jr. High, and I thought it was a cool store with all sorts of oddball applicances, toys and cables. I even was a card carrying member of the battery-of-the-month club. But as I got older, the Radio Shack appeal faded – and Radio Shack was known for having low quality stereo equipment and components.
Over the last 30 years, Radio Shack has been kind of my store of last resort. If I can’t find a cable or electronic component anywhere else, I will try Radio Shack. Even then, its usually not a pleasant shopping experience – not so much to blame Radio Shack – but to find unique electronic components amongst the array of stuff is nearly impossible without the help of a salesperson. Also, I don’t know if they still do this, but they used to always ask you for your name and address whenever you bought something – and I think that creeped a lot of people out.
To be honest I am surprised Radio Shack has lasted this long – I think my brand impression is shared by most. I think Radio Shack finally fell victim to online shopping – its much easier to plug a part number into a browser and buy it online. Perhaps its ironic that Amazon is rumored to be in talks to buy Radio Shack stores.
So I don’t know if I will miss Radio Shack, but like Blockbuster and the local record store, it appears to be another American icon falling victim to the 21st century.