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Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Sat 02 Jun, 2018 07.27
by tillyoshea
Robert Shrimsley's op-ed in today's FT Weekend
("The slow death of WHSmith") is relevant to our recent discussions. It concludes:
Robert Shrimsley wrote:Once a high street without a WH Smith seemed unimaginable. Now it seems almost inevitable. Perhaps its future lies solely in the trains-and-planes markets, and maybe there was no way around market trends. But even so, it is hard to escape the view that, in the high street, it chose to dodge death by slowly committing suicide. One thing is sure. It doesn’t look like we’ll miss it when it has gone.
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Sat 02 Jun, 2018 11.30
by thegeek
thegeek wrote: Thu 31 May, 2018 18.54
scottishtv wrote: Thu 31 May, 2018 18.41
I suspect the "Store Closing - Everything Must Go!" signs are on order for a few places too.
Speaking of which, is Maplin still clinging on? I went past one on the bus the other day with some "last few days" signs on the window.
Answering my own question:
Not a lot left - mostly components (reels of 100 resistors, RJ11 connectors, that sort of thing), plenty of odd USB cables that you probably don't need, and drums of Cat5 cable for a tenner. Oh, and all the fixtures and fittings. If I wasn't on my bike I might have bought a basket. The most expensive thing I found was a smart home TRV for £25. I bought some rechargable AAA batteries and a USB-C cig lighter adaper, for a quid each.
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Sat 02 Jun, 2018 14.30
by Alexia
scottishtv wrote: Fri 01 Jun, 2018 12.58
What about
this one? Lasted forever away up there.
Yep that's the "old chunky gold" one I referred to in my GSV posts.
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Sat 02 Jun, 2018 20.06
by WillPS
thegeek wrote: Sat 02 Jun, 2018 11.30
thegeek wrote: Thu 31 May, 2018 18.54
scottishtv wrote: Thu 31 May, 2018 18.41
I suspect the "Store Closing - Everything Must Go!" signs are on order for a few places too.
Speaking of which, is Maplin still clinging on? I went past one on the bus the other day with some "last few days" signs on the window.
Answering my own question:
Not a lot left - mostly components (reels of 100 resistors, RJ11 connectors, that sort of thing), plenty of odd USB cables that you probably don't need, and drums of Cat5 cable for a tenner. Oh, and all the fixtures and fittings. If I wasn't on my bike I might have bought a basket. The most expensive thing I found was a smart home TRV for £25. I bought some rechargable AAA batteries and a USB-C cig lighter adaper, for a quid each.
The one on the outskirts of the city centre in Nottingham shut a few weeks ago. The one on the retail park shows no sign of being close to the end, loads of stock today, mostly 60-80% off.
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Sat 02 Jun, 2018 23.55
by Martin Phillp
Croydon closed last Saturday.
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Sun 03 Jun, 2018 09.51
by thegeek
Martin Phillp wrote: Sat 02 Jun, 2018 23.55
Croydon closed last Saturday.
and so did the Maplin
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Mon 04 Jun, 2018 18.35
by Jamesypoo
Critique wrote: Fri 01 Jun, 2018 19.49
MarkAshley wrote: Thu 31 May, 2018 20.47
I'm sure it was an oversight, but my local branch had the 1970s yellow logo on the outside of the lift shaft that sticks out several stories above the municipal car park it adjoined until the Swiss MT logo two-tone green era was finally adopted in around 2007. Clearly somebody must have known about its presence because someone must have been changing the light bulbs ...
looks like this.
Interestingly that's not the only instance of M&S changing a couple of bulbs as they change logos! See the branch in Norwich in
2012 versus
2016 as a case in point...
And meanwhile,
round the corner...
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Mon 04 Jun, 2018 19.33
by thegeek
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Tue 05 Jun, 2018 01.58
by Martin Phillp
Maplin's branding and website is set to be sold to the owner of Laptops Direct.
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Tue 05 Jun, 2018 09.02
by WillPS
More like 'crisis? what crisis?'. I'd be surprised if they made it to Christmas.
Re: High Street chain collapse sweepstake
Posted: Tue 05 Jun, 2018 16.12
by WillPS
It's possible that Children's World will go in to administration now:
https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... staff-jobs
(Yes, Children's World!)
