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back to article RIP... almost: Brit high street gadget shack Maplin Electronics

Maplin has slipped into administration after PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC) failed to find a buyer for the hard-pressed gadget emporium. “I can confirm this morning that it has not been possible to secure a solvent sale of the business and as a result we now have no alternative but to enter administration,” said Maplin CEO …

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  1. djstardust

    Well at least

    If there's a fire sale the prices might come down to the same as everyone else's.

    1 - Actual electronics shoved in to a corner and no staff to help with anything technical (certainly in my experience anyway)

    2 - Shelves filled with cheap Chinese tat no-one wants .... not even at Xmas

    3 - Very expensive smart home and IOT guff no-one wants

    4 - Massively marked up cables and connectors

    5 - last year's technology priced higher than the current model

    Management are fully to blame for this. The business needed to be reformed to compete with eBay, Amazon and the likes of CPC Farnell but they sat there with high staff and store leasing costs until it finally caught up with them.

    Sad but not unexpected in the slightest.

    156 0 Reply
    1. Gordon 10
      Reply Icon

      Re: Well at least

      Utterly clueless MBA types - I can get 90% of what I want easier and faster from Amazon or other online outlets.

      The only way for shops to survive is to be a) very local b) a positive customer experience/ advice

      Which means investing in product and staff - if they don't do either they are screwed.

      If they don't make their stores "sticky" in a good way for consumers we will vote with our mice.

      See also Tat R Us (gone today) & Homebase (going, going). Hideous stores - massive checkout queues, ignorant staff standing around chatting.

      I wont deny the execution is hard - but none of these guys even seem to have identified the problem.

      54 2 Reply
      1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge
        Reply Icon

        Re: Well at least

        "I can get 90% of what I want easier and faster from Amazon or other online outlets."

        Maybe 90% is pitching it a bit high and that applies to not only stuff from Maplins but also stuff from B&Q and other suppliers.

        The problem has always been working out which. If I order from Amazon I can get it next day but the downside is that the earliest I can only get it is next day. If I could get it locally I could get it today. But the times when I've trailed 10 miles each way to the other side of town so I can get it today and then returned to order online add up to an enormous waste of time.

        The downside of buying by order (online or otherwise) is that you have to rely on promises of availability. I've just ordered as small item online which the vendor's website describes as "available"; everyone else claims it's no longer made and they have no stock so maybe that vendor had some old stock. They sent an email saying it would be in their warehouse in a week and that they'd then despatch it. I now suspect that in a week they'll return my money and say it was unobtainable. At least if a local shop has something in stock you're not relying on empty promises, no matter how well meant.

        28 1 Reply
        1. Anonymous Coward
          Reply Icon
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Well at least

          "At least if a local shop has something in stock you're not relying on empty promises, [...]"

          With Maplin it was too often an item someone had returned that was damaged if you looked closely - and the shop had just put it back on display.

          12 1 Reply
          1. Anonymous Coward
            Reply Icon
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Well at least

            @AC pretty much every item that wasnt a dongle or a cable I got from them in the last year was broke. The best was an ATX power supply that had every 24pin ATX connector snapped off in the box.

            4 0 Reply
          2. Wayland
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            In Colchester we have a Maplin and the home grown Rapid Electronics. Rapid is now what Maplin once was at it's best. Rapid are both Trade and Hobby with a great shop and massive warehouse.

            4 1 Reply
            1. rototype
              Reply Icon

              Re: Well at least

              Anyone else tried RS recently, good prices (I remember they used to be horribly overpriced, or so I thought at the time) and good delivery, as well as 'Trade Counters' which can act as 'Click & Collect' or just pop in if they've got what you need. Or there's CPC/Farnell - similar but don't remember seeing anything about trade counters with them.

              Maplin have been going down the tubes for a long time, ever since some Eejit put the beancounters in complete charge of the company, ditching any product if there's a momentary dip in sales. A story I remember from a good few years ago (when the staff actually knew what they were doing) was that the D25 plugs weren't selling as well as the D25 sockets so they were discontinued, 3 months later they discontinued the D25 sockets as well as no-one was buying them there since they coundn't get the mating plug!

              4 0 Reply
        2. Lee D Silver badge
          Reply Icon

          Re: Well at least

          "If I order from Amazon I can get it next day but the downside is that the earliest I can only get it is next day. If I could get it locally I could get it today"

          Amazon Prime Now.

          Literally demonstrated that you could buy a Corsair ATX PSU plus a load of other computer-related bits with TWO HOUR delivery.

          Sure, out in the sticks, you don't have it. But then you're probably miles from a Maplins anyway. But if you're in a Prime Now area, there is almost no point in going near a retail store for... well... most stuff really.

          12 11 Reply
          1. defiler
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            Amazon Prime Now.

            I tried to buy coffee off Amazon today because I'm working from home due to the weather, and they won't deliver until Friday!! Bloody savages.

            It's only a bit of snow...

            23 3 Reply
            1. CAPS LOCK
              Reply Icon

              "I tried to buy coffee off Amazon" - Even if they did deliver today I'm sure it would be...

              ... cold.

              26 1 Reply
            2. JimboSmith Silver badge
              Reply Icon

              Re: Well at least

              I tried to buy coffee off Amazon today because I'm working from home due to the weather, and they won't deliver until Friday!! Bloody savages.

              It's only a bit of snow...

              Weirdly amazon insisted that they couldn't deliver before Thursday for the order I placed on Monday. So much for the One Day Prime delivery I thought. Then I looked at the time and it was after 6pm so it's maybe down to the weather. This morning I had an email telling me it was out for delivery and the bloke was at my door 10 mins later despite the blizzard. About to order something else and I hope they're still delivering as fast.

              2 0 Reply
              1. Cynical Pie
                Reply Icon

                Re: Well at least

                With Amazon though their delivery estimates usually add a day or two.

                You pre-order albums and they often arrive before the release date. Similarly even when ordering some cheap tat for the kid that's coming from China its the exception that arrives on or after the estimated delivery date. If anything it usually arrives well before.

                I suspect its an element of excellent stock control (for Amazon held stuff), tight delivery requirements for partners and the odd little white lie built into the software - we will tell them 5 days when we actually reckon it'll only take 3

                1 0 Reply
            3. MrZoolook
              Reply Icon

              Re: Well at least

              I'm putting this comment on the same pedastool as "Guess she don't like the cornbread either" in Aliens.

              A masterstroke in contextual humour.

              1 0 Reply
          2. Anonymous Coward
            Reply Icon
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Well at least

            Amazon Prime Now....Sure, out in the sticks, you don't have it. But then you're probably miles from a Maplins anyway.

            Maplin have over 200 stores, Prime Now is currently focused on nine large and fairly compact cities, great for that lucky subset of city-dwelling troglodytes.

            By numbers, I'm guessing that 80% of the population have had some reasonable access to Maplin, but only about 40% of the population can get Prime Now.

            15 1 Reply
          3. Chloe Cresswell Silver badge
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            No, you're much more likely to have a maplins "near", then prime now for most of the country.

            There's only what, 9 prime now areas?

            Closest to me are 100 miles away.

            Maplins?

            1.2 miles, 28 miles, 35 miles and 45 miles.

            7 1 Reply
          4. Anonymous Coward
            Reply Icon
            Anonymous Coward

            Prime Now

            It's coming. Like it or not.

            0 0 Reply
          5. BongoJoe
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            Sure, out in the sticks, you don't have it. But then you're probably miles from a Maplins anyway. But if you're in a Prime Now area, there is almost no point in going near a retail store for... well... most stuff really.

            When we were living in our motorhome we ended up in a Prime Now area.

            This was our first order

            0 0 Reply
        3. Anonymous Coward
          Reply Icon
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Well at least

          "I order from Amazon I can get it next day but the downside is that the earliest I can only get it is next day. "

          Amazon can deliver same day - via Prime Now.

          2 7 Reply
          1. Ivan Headache
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            "Amazon can deliver same day - via Prime Now."

            Along with the associated increase in traffic and pollution.

            10 27 Reply
            1. Chloe Cresswell Silver badge
              Reply Icon

              Re: Well at least

              And if you're in one of the (iirc) 9 areas they offer prime now?

              0 2 Reply
            2. Anonymous Coward
              Reply Icon
              Meh

              Re: Well at least

              "Amazon can deliver same day - via Prime Now."

              Along with the associated increase in traffic and pollution.

              Why would it cause more pollution if the van came today instead of tomorrow? The backone delivery network behind it also runs whether it has to handle a million parcels or a million and one. Even comparing Amazon with going to Maplin and buying some piece of tat, in my experience most Maplins are in our-of-townish retail parks so each an every customer has to drive there anyway.

              11 1 Reply
              1. Anonymous Coward
                Reply Icon
                Anonymous Coward

                Re: Well at least

                "Why would it cause more pollution if the van came today instead of tomorrow?"

                Isn't that obvious? It doesn't matter what day it is it's an extra van journey that doesn't need to be made. It's an extra van clogging up an already busy street full of vans delivering groceries, parcels from ebay, parcels from john lewis, parcels from QVC and all those other 'shopping channels', parcels from the post office and the umpteen other things that are too big to go in the postman's sack. Each drop-off means more stop-start diesel fumes, more miles to drive, more brake dust, more speed from the driver in order to get the drops done in time.

                As for Maplins being 'out-of-townish', I can walk to three from my house in under 30 minutes - all in shopping streets.

                The world is being over-run with white vans because of internet shopping (and oversized SUVs).

                1 8 Reply
              2. Pseudonymous Clown Art
                Reply Icon

                Re: Well at least

                Surely theres a net loss in pollution given the hard knock the mobile DJ industry will have as a knock effect of Maplin going bust?

                0 0 Reply
            3. A____B
              Reply Icon

              Re: Well at least

              But heaven help you if the item doesn't work.

              Amazon is on my 'back of the queue list' and I won't buy from them unless I really have to [not found a need in nearly 2 years now].

              Bought a phone from Amazon - allegedly UK spec Huawei. ( months later it failed. Amazon won't replace it (says it's not our problem - although we advertised it and we took your money, it was a 3rd party), the 3rd party has vanished (and Amazon has less interest in finding them or chasing them up than a politician has in giving a truthful straight answer), Huawei claim it's not a UK phone and won't honour the warranty, the credit card company say talk to Amazon, we won't refund you....

              So for the sake of a few pounds, Amazon's not only lost a customer but now has one who'll try to dissuade family and friends from using them. If they devoted a fraction of the effort they spent on tax dodging to providing a service they'd have two lots of Christmas shopping and probably a monthly Prim income from me.

              Back on topic - comparing Maplins and PC World (who are almost next to each other where I live) is interesting. As mentioned by someone else the Maplins staff do at least engage with you (often too much) whereas PC World staff hide; I wanted to buy a vacuum cleaner recently and there were no staff in sight apart from a chap standing by the door. I asked if he could fetch me a cleaner so I could buy it and got a "not my job! you need a salesperson" reply. Needless to say they lost a sale.

              4 6 Reply
              1. BinkyTheMagicPaperclip Silver badge
                Reply Icon

                Re: Well at least

                I've had few issues with Amazon, but I'd have to say I think their customer service is slipping. They've moved beyond trying to do everything, and have dropped some of their range, but at the same time as letting in all manner of third parties of various repute. Prices have gone up too, and it's not unusual to find a 'next day' Prime delivery that isn't.

                For the lower end stuff ebay is now a better option.

                1 0 Reply
                1. Anonymous Coward
                  Reply Icon
                  Anonymous Coward

                  Re: Well at least

                  "and it's not unusual to find a 'next day' Prime delivery that isn't."

                  I don't have Prime and usually go for the "free" delivery. That used to take at least a week. The last few times it has been delivered the next day - even on a Sunday.

                  2 0 Reply
              2. Anonymous Coward
                Reply Icon
                Anonymous Coward

                Re: Well at least

                When Amazon pull that crap... do what I did... I have access to 2 amazon accounts, my own and one I share with my mum (I have POA over her affairs).

                Bought a dashcam, it failed after 4-5 months, seller caused all sorts of issues... wanted it shipped to china for repair/replacement... cost of shipping was ridiculous and they refused to pay. Offered £10 to repair it locally. Amazon refused to help as 3rd party seller... suggested I do a chargeback... except it was purchased with a gift card. Told Amazon we'd do a chargeback on the giftcard then which was more than the dashcam... They disputed the charge back and bank refunded, then debited the money again.

                So instead of getting pissed of and losing money... Bought another dashcam.. a better model.. using Prime only seller... When it arrived... 'oh dear me' Amazon appear to have sent the wrong one... and not only that it's faulty... Better return it for a refund... postage paid for by amazon.

                End result... I've had a better dashcam for the last 18 months and the broken one was returned to amazon.

                My motto is simple.. if they fuck with me... fuck em right back.

                As for Maplins... they went from a decent place to get those little bits and bobs you needed quickly.. like some wiring, PCB, and LED's to make up a custom OBDI reader for an old sports car... to purveyors of poundland style tat that was sold for £10 a time instead.

                They are the victims of their own complacency and ineptitude... and whilst I feel for anyone who gets made redundant without any notice... I cannot feel sorry for the morons who made it possible.

                5 1 Reply
                1. chas49
                  Reply Icon

                  Re: Well at least

                  So you've basically defrauded a different seller? Nice attitude. I see why you posted as AC.

                  7 0 Reply
                  1. Anonymous Coward
                    Reply Icon
                    Anonymous Coward

                    Re: Well at least

                    No it was Amazon I did it too... they refused to refund me for faulty gear, and then told me to do a charge back.. which I did... and they then disputed the charge back and got the funds retaken from my account.

                    So Amazon were directly responsible for my loss by refusing to adhere to the basic statutory consumer rights... Take your pick if it's the sale and supply of goods act or any other of the consumer rights acts that apply.

                    AC because I'm not stupid.. If Amazon behaved better, so would I. :)

                    0 0 Reply
            4. Anonymous Coward
              Reply Icon
              Anonymous Coward

              Along with the associated increase in traffic and pollution.

              Yeah because one van doing a multi-drop is worse than many individual vehicles driving into town and sitting in queues. Dickhead.

              8 1 Reply
              1. Ivan Headache
                Reply Icon

                Re: Along with the associated increase in traffic and pollution.

                Thanks for the namecall. Just how many delivery vans visit your street each day?

                I promise you It's not the same one doing every delivery.

                I live in a small street of about 100 houses. There's a delivery van approximately every 30 minutes - even after dark.

                Who's the dickhead?

                1 6 Reply
                1. Gordon 10
                  Reply Icon

                  Re: Along with the associated increase in traffic and pollution.

                  How many cars visit the high street or retail park every day?

                  Every parcel in a van means one less journey out the door, the majority of which will be in a car poorly warmed up and spewing pollution. At least the vans will be running warm.

                  I bet there is a net drop in pollution even if the vans are a little less good at emissions.

                  4 1 Reply
            5. Blitheringeejit
              Reply Icon
              Mushroom

              Re: Well at least

              ..plus the associated decrease in corporation tax revenues, making it harder for the state to pay for decent snow clearance and gritting capability.

              Proud to be in the minority of upvoters.

              0 0 Reply
          2. tiggity Silver badge
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            @AC

            As LEE D said, Prime Now only in some big urban areas, not available in the arse end of nowhere FSVO nowhere that include quite major towns / cities

            5 1 Reply
          3. lybad
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            Prime Now? Where I live, next day delivery is usually 2 days.

            Or delivery to a locker at work, which is next day, but up to 10pm, when I usually leave work before 5pm.

            1 1 Reply
            1. Anonymous Coward
              Reply Icon
              Anonymous Coward

              Re: Well at least

              "Or delivery to a locker at work"

              Sounds like you work at Morrisons. I'd be worried about them too.

              0 1 Reply
          4. Arthur the cat Silver badge
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            Amazon can deliver same day - via Prime Now.

            Not where I live. Anybody know what percentage of the population is covered?

            3 1 Reply
        4. Alan Brown Silver badge
          Reply Icon

          Re: Well at least

          "f I order from Amazon I can get it next day but the downside is that the earliest I can only get it is next day. If I could get it locally I could get it today. "

          It doesn't help when you do look online, find the item is supposedly in stock but then it's nowhere to be found in-store.

          4 0 Reply
          1. Anonymous Coward
            Reply Icon
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Well at least

            "It doesn't help when you do look online, find the item is supposedly in stock but then it's nowhere to be found in-store."

            Had that with Tesco this week. Their online price comparison for a branded tub of parmesan cheese quoted £1.59 against Sainsbury and Waitrose at £2.20.

            We have a large 24hour Tesco - I went in and they had never heard of the product.

            Reminds me of the old joke about two shops having a price war over bacon. As soon as one advertised a lower price the other undercut it. Finally one shopkeeper went across the road and asked how they could have such a low price - "We don't sell bacon".

            4 1 Reply
      2. Anonymous Coward
        Reply Icon
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: See also Tat R Us (gone today) &

        I know someone who does toy sales into retailers. They remarked a few months ago that in fact TRU isn't that badly off as toy retailers go; but that the US parent is in /much/ bigger trouble, and has been siphoning as much money as they can out of the UK part and then over to the US. If I understood correctly, it's this what really did for them [a] as regards their other troubles - credit insurance or whatever. I'd just advanced the "internet competition" argument for TRU's problems, and was then corrected.

        [a] (or was doing for them, at the time I heard).

        Of course, I may have got the wrong end of the stick somehow. It'd be interesting to see if any real details eventually surface. It's not quite clear how to me the money-extraction theory works with the private equity ownership.

        10 0 Reply
        1. Wayland
          Reply Icon

          Re: See also Tat R Us (gone today) &

          Yes American companies will suck money from their British subsidiary to keep the home fires burning. Block Buster had this.

          8 1 Reply
          1. Anonymous Coward
            Reply Icon
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: See also Tat R Us (gone today) &

            Well, they are only doing what comes naturally to Americans.

            The perceived benefit of overseas subsidiaries has always been an out-of-tax-range money-pot waiting to be of use to the parent when the need arises.

            Our sceptred isle's contribution to making America great again.

            As more and more specialist businesses are run by money-market firms, the expertise is driven out of the equation smartly followed by the overpaid executives who move on to the next killing field as the losses mount.

            'It's only money' is the mantra of today. Grab your severance pack and run.

            1 0 Reply
        2. J. R. Hartley
          Reply Icon

          Re: See also Tat R Us (gone today) &

          Currys PC World must be fucking shitting themselves.

          8 1 Reply
        3. Grouchy Bloke
          Reply Icon

          Re: See also Tat R Us (gone today) &

          TRU

          Interesting analysis...

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JYUo9WKkao

          0 1 Reply
        4. paulc
          Reply Icon

          Re: See also Tat R Us (gone today) &

          but that the US parent is in /much/ bigger trouble, and has been siphoning as much money as they can out of the UK part and then over to the US.

          oh yes over half a Billion pounds 'written off' in a loan to a shell company based in a tax haven...

          https://www.ftadviser.com/pensions/2017/12/19/toys-r-us-pension-trustees-kept-entirely-in-the-dark/

          In letters sent to the scheme trustees and to The Pensions Regulator (TPR), Mr Field accused the firm of waiving a sum of £584.5m in loans owed to it by a firm in the British Virgin Islands in the year ending January 2017, when it made a pre-tax loss of £673.3m.

          The firm had stated in its accounts this was part of a "group reorganisation".

          3 0 Reply
      3. Dr Who
        Reply Icon

        Re: Well at least

        One dreads to think what "sticky" in a bad way might be. Ann Summers perhaps?

        6 1 Reply
      4. caffeine addict
        Reply Icon

        Re: Well at least

        See also Tat R Us (gone today) & Homebase (going, going). Hideous stores - massive checkout queues, ignorant staff standing around chatting.

        Homebase belongs to Bunnings now. Unless there's news I've not heard it's not at any imminent risk...

        3 1 Reply
        1. smudge
          Reply Icon

          Re: Well at least

          Homebase belongs to Bunnings now. Unless there's news I've not heard it's not at any imminent risk...

          https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/bunnings-uk-woes-deepen-with-1-billion-writedown-20180205-p4yze8.html

          "Retail giant Wesfarmers could abort its troubled invasion of the British Isles as soon as June after admitting it made serious mistakes when trying to transplant the successful Bunnings model to the northern hemisphere...."

          8 1 Reply
          1. Pseudonymous Clown Art
            Reply Icon

            Re: Well at least

            Yes I had a wander around one, prices are amazing...but I don't need a 24-can beer cooler, shark cage and spearfishing gear...

            0 0 Reply
        2. Anonymous Coward
          Reply Icon
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Well at least

          There is indeed news you've evidently not heard:

          http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-5352979/Up-40-stores-shut-following-poor-trading-results.html

          Homebase has been a basket case for years. Dingy, ramshackle, poorly lit stores full of ancient stock, mostly over-priced, poor customer service, and lacking real scale or a sense of market positioning. Lord knows what was going through Bunning's management's heads - presumably they'd never been here, believed the consultant's powerpoint lies about the profitable growth opportunity, didn't know what a shite outfit Homebase was, and fell in love with the idea of paid-for trips to London. Imagine how horrified they must have been when they realised they'd spend over a third of a billion quid on a shit-palace, and then had to take a further writedown of half a billion quid.

          I'm sure there's a few busy stores, all the ones I know of you're more likely to bump into tumbleweed than another customer, and even with the store closures the new owners have a dog eared brand, 10-30 less stores to cover the overheads, and they're fighting an uphill battle on most high value products against internet retailers, for tools and the like there's Toolstation and Screwfix, and on the low margin heavyweight stuff they are uncompetitive against builder's merchants and "heavy grade" DIY sheds like WIckes.

          8 2 Reply

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