According to my research, Radio Shack is not the only one in serious
trouble. We all know that Radio Shack has gone out of business, but Best
Buys and HH Gregg may not be too far behind. The brick & mortar retail store
way of doing business is seriously hurting for a variety of reasons, not the
least of which is the enormous competition from internet marketers. Other
big name brick & mortar retails in serious difficulty include Sears, K-Mart,
Macy's, JC Penney, Office Depot/Max, Family Dollar, Staples, Barnes & Noble,
Abercrombie & Fitch,    Walgreens,    7-Eleven,    Sprint,    Albertson's,
Build-A-Bear,    

Winn-Dixie, and there are several others. I am not saying that all of these
businesses are definitely going to file for bankruptcy, but I am saying that
they are all in serious financial difficulty, and it is quite likely they
will either go bankrupt, or they will merge with someone, but in the long
run, they are not likely to survive in their present form. It has always
been tough to start a new business and even tougher to stay in business, and
it is getting even more difficult as key factors change more and more
rapidly. 

 

As I look ahead, I think it is going to be a big challenge for our current
heavy hitters in the amateur radio equipment market to survive unless they
can figure out how to compete with the emergence of the Chinese
manufacturers. Many of us remember the days when we could choose from among
Hallicrafters, Heathkit, Hammarlund, Harvey Wells, National, WRL/Globe,
Viking, Collins, among others, but they are all in the past because they
could not compete with the changing market and particularly the Japanese
manufacturers. We could be seeing history repeating itself! 

 

Ron, K8HSY

Dr. Ronald E. Milliman

Retired Professor of Marketing