CompUSA announced on Friday that it had been acquired by the restructuring firm Gordon Brothers Group, which will in turn liquidate the company, or what's left of it after half of its locations were shuttered earlier this year. The company noted challenging business conditions as the primary reason for its demise, though anyone who has shopped there recently would be able to tell you that poor service, dull merchandising, dreary store environments and a general lack of competitive pricing are to blame. What else besides mismanagement could be to blame for the demise of a large national computer chain (228 stores this time last year) during a technology boom? The Shophound lives near a sizable branch of the store, and lately we have been going there to only look at what we will order later for a better price from Amazon. The above photos were taken on what should have been a busy Holiday Season Saturday afternoon. We barely saw a hint of Christmas decoration, let alone much in the way of customers. The giant new Best Buy a few short blocks away which sells much of the same merchandise, was substantially busier.
A liquidation, however, usually means a big liquidation sale! Woo hoo!
Before you get too excited, we are willing to bet that the chain's premium vendors who rarely if ever discount, like Apple or Bose for example, will be able to demand that their goods be returned before they are sold at fire sale prices. As of yet, the G.O.B sales have not yet begun, however, we will be keeping a sharp eye out for them. After all, it will probably be worth it just for the discount on printer ink and blank CDs.
UPDATE: We hear that liquidation will begin after the Holidays which could mean Chanukah, which ends tomorrow (but probably doesn't), or New Years, but most likely means December 26th. Can you hold out for that cut-rate external drive, or are you just not that much of a geek?
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