Sony closes 2/3 of its stores in the U.S.

On 28/02/2014 7:17 p.m., Eric Stevens wrote:
On Thu, 27 Feb 2014 21:40:59 -0800, Savageduck
wrote:

On 2014-02-28 05:34:08 +0000, Michael Black said:

On Thu, 27 Feb 2014, Scott Schuckert wrote:

In article ,
RichA wrote:

I didn't know they only had 31 stores there, I figured they had more.

I didn't know they had stores.

That's because they were relatively few.

I think they were treated more like boutiques. A place to showcase
their products, but not a major revenue stream. The stores help build
the brand, and help build a "mystique".

Others have done it, I thought because Sony did it. The Apple Stores
are like that, they aren't factory outlets, they don't replace the
stores selling their products, but they help build the brand. When the
store opened up downtown here, there was a big lineup, people wanting
in on the action, helping to promote Apple by lining up.

Disney has such stores too, though perhaps in their case they actually
have more products that often don't get into regular streams.

I was tempted to go down there with my Apple II, or maybe my Apple
digital camera from about 20 years ago (ask if I can get a new battery
compartment cover), a stunt to show off that Apple is older than
Macintosh, or the gadgets of recent years. But then I forgot, only
remembering when I just happened to walk past there opening day and the
lineup reminded me.

Since it's primarily advertising, it's no wonder they might close
stores. They have to weigh the cost of the store versus the value it
brings in. Having a fancy store in New York City and Los Angeles makes
sense, having one in Rapid City, South Dakota doesn't.

Michael

Hell! We don't have one here in Paso Robles, CA, or our big city in
this county San Luis Obispo, CA, and that has two Apple stores.
Personally I have yet to see any dedicated Sony store, anywhere.

There used to be one in Melbourne. I don't know whether or not it is
still there.

There is (was?) one in Christchurch NZ.

Sony are completely quitting their PC (mainly "Vaio" branded notebook)
business - it's already been sold.
The "boutique" store concept seems to work for some companies (Apple,
Nespresso, others?) who can afford high budget marketing because they
can maintain very high margins.
Nothing "wrong" with a Vaio notebook - they were/are quite good, but no
reason to pay a premium over Asus, Dell etc.

On 2014-02-28 23:49:47 +0000, PeterN said:

On 2/28/2014 1:04 AM, Savageduck wrote:

snip
There seem to be quite a few in the Bay Area. As for Gilroy they seem to
have a spot at the Gilroy Outlet Stores and handle clearance and
refurbished products.
I usually drive straight past Gilroy on the 101 when headed to the Bay
Area from my place.


As a garlic lover, I could never just drive past Gilroy.

The outlet stores are a Hwy 101 eyesore way North of the old village of
Gilroy where they have the farm stalls and the annual Garlic Festival.
They are closer to Morgan Hill than Gilroy. Morgan Hill is another one
of those places I usually drive right past.
It is easy enough to stop at the garlic farms which are on the Southern
boundary of Gilroy and are best accessed when headed North on 101.

the only sample I didn'tlike was garlic wine.

So, you liked the garlic ice cream?

--
Regards,

Savageduck

In article , PeterN
wrote:

There seem to be quite a few in the Bay Area. As for Gilroy they seem to
have a spot at the Gilroy Outlet Stores and handle clearance and
refurbished products.
I usually drive straight past Gilroy on the 101 when headed to the Bay
Area from my place.

As a garlic lover, I could never just drive past Gilroy. the only sample
I didn'tlike was garlic wine.

wine can be bad because it's ****ty wine, not because it has garlic in
it.

In article ,
says...

On 28/02/2014 7:17 p.m., Eric Stevens wrote:
On Thu, 27 Feb 2014 21:40:59 -0800, Savageduck
wrote:

On 2014-02-28 05:34:08 +0000, Michael Black said:

On Thu, 27 Feb 2014, Scott Schuckert wrote:

In article ,
RichA wrote:

I didn't know they only had 31 stores there, I figured they had more.

I didn't know they had stores.

That's because they were relatively few.

I think they were treated more like boutiques. A place to showcase
their products, but not a major revenue stream. The stores help build
the brand, and help build a "mystique".

Others have done it, I thought because Sony did it. The Apple Stores
are like that, they aren't factory outlets, they don't replace the
stores selling their products, but they help build the brand. When the
store opened up downtown here, there was a big lineup, people wanting
in on the action, helping to promote Apple by lining up.

Disney has such stores too, though perhaps in their case they actually
have more products that often don't get into regular streams.

I was tempted to go down there with my Apple II, or maybe my Apple
digital camera from about 20 years ago (ask if I can get a new battery
compartment cover), a stunt to show off that Apple is older than
Macintosh, or the gadgets of recent years. But then I forgot, only
remembering when I just happened to walk past there opening day and the
lineup reminded me.

Since it's primarily advertising, it's no wonder they might close
stores. They have to weigh the cost of the store versus the value it
brings in. Having a fancy store in New York City and Los Angeles makes
sense, having one in Rapid City, South Dakota doesn't.

Michael

Hell! We don't have one here in Paso Robles, CA, or our big city in
this county San Luis Obispo, CA, and that has two Apple stores.
Personally I have yet to see any dedicated Sony store, anywhere.

There used to be one in Melbourne. I don't know whether or not it is
still there.

There is (was?) one in Christchurch NZ.

Sony are completely quitting their PC (mainly "Vaio" branded notebook)
business - it's already been sold.
The "boutique" store concept seems to work for some companies (Apple,
Nespresso, others?) who can afford high budget marketing because they
can maintain very high margins.
Nothing "wrong" with a Vaio notebook - they were/are quite good, but no
reason to pay a premium over Asus, Dell etc.

Perhaps the new investors will actually know how to run a computer
business. Sony made pretty machines with nice features but they were
pretty much unmaintanable.

In article 201402281621075869-savageduck1@REMOVESPAMmecom, Savageduck
wrote:

So, you liked the garlic ice cream?

i dunno about peter but i love the garlic ice cream. that stuff is
*really* good.

i've had garlic ice cream elsewhere, which turned out to be vanilla ice
cream with a garlic sauce. to say it was bad is an understatement. in
fact, it's bordering on fraud because the ice cream was store-bought
and had no garlic in it whatsoever. it just had a garlic sauce.

what i found most bizarre about the garlic festival was the garlic
perfume. if you're going to smell like garlic, you should at least eat
it and enjoy it, rather than just splash it on. who would buy such a
thing?

On 1/03/2014 1:38 p.m., J. Clarke wrote:
In article ,
says...

On 28/02/2014 7:17 p.m., Eric Stevens wrote:
On Thu, 27 Feb 2014 21:40:59 -0800, Savageduck
wrote:

On 2014-02-28 05:34:08 +0000, Michael Black said:

On Thu, 27 Feb 2014, Scott Schuckert wrote:

In article ,
RichA wrote:

I didn't know they only had 31 stores there, I figured they had more.

I didn't know they had stores.

That's because they were relatively few.

I think they were treated more like boutiques. A place to showcase
their products, but not a major revenue stream. The stores help build
the brand, and help build a "mystique".

Others have done it, I thought because Sony did it. The Apple Stores
are like that, they aren't factory outlets, they don't replace the
stores selling their products, but they help build the brand. When the
store opened up downtown here, there was a big lineup, people wanting
in on the action, helping to promote Apple by lining up.

Disney has such stores too, though perhaps in their case they actually
have more products that often don't get into regular streams.

I was tempted to go down there with my Apple II, or maybe my Apple
digital camera from about 20 years ago (ask if I can get a new battery
compartment cover), a stunt to show off that Apple is older than
Macintosh, or the gadgets of recent years. But then I forgot, only
remembering when I just happened to walk past there opening day and the
lineup reminded me.

Since it's primarily advertising, it's no wonder they might close
stores. They have to weigh the cost of the store versus the value it
brings in. Having a fancy store in New York City and Los Angeles makes
sense, having one in Rapid City, South Dakota doesn't.

Michael

Hell! We don't have one here in Paso Robles, CA, or our big city in
this county San Luis Obispo, CA, and that has two Apple stores.
Personally I have yet to see any dedicated Sony store, anywhere.

There used to be one in Melbourne. I don't know whether or not it is
still there.

There is (was?) one in Christchurch NZ.

Sony are completely quitting their PC (mainly "Vaio" branded notebook)
business - it's already been sold.
The "boutique" store concept seems to work for some companies (Apple,
Nespresso, others?) who can afford high budget marketing because they
can maintain very high margins.
Nothing "wrong" with a Vaio notebook - they were/are quite good, but no
reason to pay a premium over Asus, Dell etc.

Perhaps the new investors will actually know how to run a computer
business. Sony made pretty machines with nice features but they were
pretty much unmaintanable.


Surely you jest. "Unmaintainable" has become a standard "feature" of
many consumer oriented computing devices, high-end fondle-slabs, phones etc.
Given the choice of slim, sleek, seamless, and shiny, "easily
maintained" started losing the race years ago.

On 2/28/2014 7:21 PM, Savageduck wrote:
On 2014-02-28 23:49:47 +0000, PeterN said:

On 2/28/2014 1:04 AM, Savageduck wrote:

snip
There seem to be quite a few in the Bay Area. As for Gilroy they seem to
have a spot at the Gilroy Outlet Stores and handle clearance and
refurbished products.
I usually drive straight past Gilroy on the 101 when headed to the Bay
Area from my place.


As a garlic lover, I could never just drive past Gilroy.

The outlet stores are a Hwy 101 eyesore way North of the old village of
Gilroy where they have the farm stalls and the annual Garlic Festival.
They are closer to Morgan Hill than Gilroy. Morgan Hill is another one
of those places I usually drive right past.
It is easy enough to stop at the garlic farms which are on the Southern
boundary of Gilroy and are best accessed when headed North on 101.

the only sample I didn'tlike was garlic wine.

So, you liked the garlic ice cream?


And the garlic cheese. My wife made me eat everything before she would
get in the car. She hates garlic. *or as they pronounce it in Boston,
gahlik.

--
PeterN

On 2/28/2014 7:54 PM, nospam wrote:
In article 201402281621075869-savageduck1@REMOVESPAMmecom, Savageduck
wrote:

So, you liked the garlic ice cream?

i dunno about peter but i love the garlic ice cream. that stuff is
*really* good.

i've had garlic ice cream elsewhere, which turned out to be vanilla ice
cream with a garlic sauce. to say it was bad is an understatement. in
fact, it's bordering on fraud because the ice cream was store-bought
and had no garlic in it whatsoever. it just had a garlic sauce.

what i found most bizarre about the garlic festival was the garlic
perfume. if you're going to smell like garlic, you should at least eat
it and enjoy it, rather than just splash it on. who would buy such a
thing?


OMG will hell be colder than Barrow? I am in complete agreement with nospam.

--
PeterN

On 2/28/2014 7:22 PM, nospam wrote:
In article , PeterN
wrote:

There seem to be quite a few in the Bay Area. As for Gilroy they seem to
have a spot at the Gilroy Outlet Stores and handle clearance and
refurbished products.
I usually drive straight past Gilroy on the 101 when headed to the Bay
Area from my place.

As a garlic lover, I could never just drive past Gilroy. the only sample
I didn'tlike was garlic wine.

wine can be bad because it's ****ty wine, not because it has garlic in
it.


I would not ruin a decent wine by adding gahlik

--
PeterN

In article , PeterN
wrote:

So, you liked the garlic ice cream?

i dunno about peter but i love the garlic ice cream. that stuff is
*really* good.

i've had garlic ice cream elsewhere, which turned out to be vanilla ice
cream with a garlic sauce. to say it was bad is an understatement. in
fact, it's bordering on fraud because the ice cream was store-bought
and had no garlic in it whatsoever. it just had a garlic sauce.

what i found most bizarre about the garlic festival was the garlic
perfume. if you're going to smell like garlic, you should at least eat
it and enjoy it, rather than just splash it on. who would buy such a
thing?

OMG will hell be colder than Barrow? I am in complete agreement with nospam.

it certainly wasn't that cold when i was there.

in fact, it was a nice warm spring day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell,_Michigan