../../../..//2007/12/04/rumor-has-it-that-compusa/
Rumor has it that CompUSA could be closing down for good immediately following the holidays. UPDATE: This has come true: CompUSA Will Close All Stores After Holidays
retail
This Boneless Spiral Ham Is "Delicious For Chanukah"
By 12.4.07
This photo, and a few others of similar signs on similar hams, was taken at Balducci’s on 8th Ave. at 14th Street, on Sunday, 12/2 by NancyKay Shapiro. She’s attributed the signs to the “Department of Monumental Cluelessness, Well-Meaning Division.”
By 12.4.07
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Ric Romero, famous consumer reporter, wants you to know that some stores offer 10% off if you sign up for their credit card. Also, some stores will email you when they have a sale.
Sears Is #2 Holiday Shopping Destination, Still Can't Make Any Money
By 12.3.07
According to a poll cited by the Chicago Sun-Times, Sears is the #2 holiday shopping destination this year (after Walmart.) So why can’t they make any money?
Best Buy Porn Thief Inquisitions Revealed
By 12.3.07
After reading “How Geek Squad Investigated Its Own Porn Thieves,” another fired Geek Squad tech has chimed in to tell us how the internal witch hunt for porn thieves proceeded.
I had worked for Geek Squad for over a year, and Best Buy a year and a half before that and was recently let go. Back when they started scanning computers, they said they found downloaded music and movies on our machine and we were to send them the hard drives. So we boxed them up and sent them out.
Target To Downgrade Return Policy: Receipts Always Required
By 12.3.07
A Target insider writes:“Starting next year, guests will no longer be able to return items without a receipt. This means that if you accidentally lose your receipt, or if your cashier doesn’t give you one, you’re SOL.
Marshalls Advertisting Proactiv Over The PA?
By 12.3.07
Have you ever heard a store advertising stuff they don’t sell over the PA? Reader Anne describes some weirdness she encountered at Marshalls:
I just returned from a trip to Marshalls where I was subjected to an ad for Proactiv over the PA system. It was really horrendous and must be addressed! The worst part is that I’m pretty sure they don’t even sell Proactiv at Marshalls, so it’s not like a blue light special informing us shoppers of a Proactive special in aisle 12.
Is Express Taxing Tax-Exempt Items?
By 12.1.07
An Express in New York City charged a sharp-eyed reader tax on a belt that cost $34.50. Neither the city nor state levy tax on items costing less than $110.
Which Is Better: "Store Cards" Or Store Branded Visas?
By 12.1.07
It has now become common for store to offer, in addition to their regular store-brand credit card, a co-branded Visa, Amex or Mastercard.
Sears' Cost Cutting Not Going So Well
By 11.30.07
The New York Times has an article that attempts to diagnose what’s wrong with Sears, and it mainly focuses on their (ill-advised?) cost cutting strategy.
What’s Wrong With Sears?
By 11.29.07
Sears’ earnings are down 99% and there’s really no denying that something is going wrong with the retailer. Same store sales, the most important indicator of the health of a store, fell 4.2 percent in the third quarter.
By 11.28.07
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We don’t necessarily agree that this Circuit City customer should have gotten a purple thumb drive for the same price as the same black one, or gotten a deal after it had expired, but two things are certain: One, he pursued his deal beyond the point of reason, and Two, the complaint’s ornate tone and its litany of gripes makes for an entertaining read. [CheapAssGamer]
By 11.28.07
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Seems like we’re not the only ones noticing that Sears customer service can be as effective as a pile of pulsating wood pulp. WCVB5 in Boston runs a segment on the retailer’s faded glory and current woes at 11 tonight. [WCVB]
The Washington Elite Shop At Costco
By 11.27.07
Apparently, the current crop of Washington elite shop at Costco for all their fancy dinner parties, which is certainly the most sensible thing we’ve heard about the douchebags who populate our nation’s capital in a long time.
Beware! Apple Stores Have Mysterious Tractor Beams
By 11.27.07
Your local Apple Store is home to a mysterious tractor beam that pulls in unwitting shoppers who venture less than 25 feet from its storefront, says Apple Insider. An anylst from Piper Jaffray spent 6 hours monitoring traffic in front of various Apple Stores and found that shoppers were inexplicably drawn to the big glowing Apple.
By 11.27.07
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An LA resident reports he was verbally threatened and banned from Circuit City after insisting that the store honor its car audio installation guarantee. [Atwater Village Newbie]
By 11.27.07
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The folks at NPR would like you to know that they’ve added a “Green Room” to the NPR Shop. In addition to not wrecking the planet, your purchase supports NPR’s general awesomeness. The glassware made from recycled wine bottles looks pretty darn cool. [NPR]
Best Buy Hoards Black Friday Doorbuster Laptops For Employees And Their Girlfriends?
By 11.26.07
One of Best Buy’s Black Friday deals was a $229 laptop. Each store was supposed to have 15. A complaint letter posted over at Notebooks.com alleges that a New Orleans Best Buy hoarded the most laptops for the employees and passed out only a few vouchers. At one point, an employee’s girlfriend in line threw a hissy-fit because she didn’t get a voucher and her boyfriend snuck over and palmed her a voucher, skipping over the other customers in line. Shame shame shame, Best Buy. Yet another reason we hate Black Friday, the stores can’t even abide by the rules of the in-store promotions that are designed to lure more people inside than will ever get the deal and then offload otherwise unsellable crap.
