[funkdobiest]

Last time I was in RadioShack was in the 90's in Washington DC, and I went there for a connector, and there were literally 20 people in line all buying minutes for cell phones, with only one person in the store. I thought this was some sort of hidden camera reality/joke tv show. I just put the item down and left.

[mistermumble]

I remember going to RS stores to buy a 99 cent part and the clerk having to write, in long hand, on a triplicate form, my name and address and the item, before entering the amount on a cash register. I refused to give my info, and he said he could not sell me the part without it, so I said: "OK, my name is John Doe at 123 Main Street". He looked at me quizically and then wrote it down on the form without a word.

For a long time I avoided Radio Shack stores because I did not want to go through this charade. Only when desperate ("I need this connector right now"). The desperate-user scenario is not one for business success, especially when selling 99 cent parts.

[danielweber]

Radio Shack was infamous for collecting customer information. "No, we can't sell you without this information."

RS will be beloved by business-school types for how many different big mistakes it made.

[funkdobiest]

I totally forgot about that! I used to give them 1600 Pennsylvania as my address. I was bike messenger at the time so I knew all the good addresses in DC and would give them all the big federal buildings.

[syntheticnature]

This sounds almost identical to my last time in RadioShack, except instead of 20 people, there were two couples, each doing some contract change so onerous that I waited half an hour to buy the component in my hand -- and only got out then because one of the two clerks decided to put the cell phone contract bits on hold and let me buy my item.