Businesses You're Amazed Are Still Around

Started by OCGuy81, February 04, 2015, 01:09:46 PM

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corco

#25
Quote from: 1995hoo on February 04, 2015, 02:29:16 PM
It's just trendy these days to bash McDonald's.

I think that's what it is- but in reality McDonald's still serves a very important purpose that will keep them from going out of business. If you need cheap, very consistent, fast, filling food, McDonald's is still the very best. The food may not be great, but it is what it is and it's remarkably consistent from location to location, and it comes at a very reasonable price. Does that make McDonald's a place I want to go for lunch everyday? No. But in a pinch if I'm in a hurry and need food that doesn't need to be great but that I can trust to be "good enough" and I need to count on a quick drive-thru, McDonald's comes through for me every time.

Just yesterday, I was up in Glasgow Montana and was running a bit behind for a meeting and knew I would need to eat. Glasgow has a great fast taco place, and I'd have eaten there, but the drive thru is slow as molasses. It also has a Dairy Queen, but Dairy Queen is hilariously inconsistent from restaurant to restaurant. I went to McDonald's because I knew I could get in and out fast and get a filling meal at a low price.


J N Winkler

Quote from: 1995hoo on February 04, 2015, 05:43:22 PMFrankly, I just find it convenient to be able to walk to the Radio Shack for those annoying button-style batteries. If they close, I'll find some other source, but for now, why bother with ordering online and the like when I can get what I need within half a mile of home?

I think their best remaining business model, short of liquidation, is to close all their stores and sell the sort of stuff people go to RadioShack for--such as batteries, circuit elements, soldering supplies, etc.--from automated kiosks.
"It is necessary to spend a hundred lire now to save a thousand lire later."--Piero Puricelli, explaining the need for a first-class road system to Benito Mussolini

vtk

Pizza Hut. Dine in service is lousy almost everywhere, except for the location where I'm sitting right now. The only reason they still have my business at all is their apparent monopoly on Stuffed Crust. Is that patented or something?
Wait, it's all Ohio? Always has been.

cjk374

Quote from: vtk on February 04, 2015, 08:50:38 PM
Pizza Hut. Dine in service is lousy almost everywhere, except for the location where I'm sitting right now. The only reason they still have my business at all is their apparent monopoly on Stuffed Crust. Is that patented or something?

I've seen stuffed crust pizza in the frozen food section of the grocery store...DiGiorno maybe?
Runnin' roads and polishin' rails.

SignGeek101

Quote from: jeffandnicole on February 04, 2015, 07:05:59 PM
Newspapers - the paper version - have somehow survived.  And I'm talking about as a whole, since there are several examples of papers that have gone out of business.  Maybe because their main audience is people over the age of 70 that shy away from the internet.  Lord knows they've gotten rid of editors, photographers, reporters, spellcheckers, punctuation checkers, making sure the story on the front page actually continues on the page it's supposed to continue on checkers, and fact checkers.

I bought a newspaper on Sunday for the first time since probably Thanksgiving, mostly due to the fact that I was going to be sitting around for 8 hours without the ability to watch the Superbowl (at least I could listen to it on the radio), and didn't want to use up all the data on my cell phone as I wouldn't have Wifi access either.

I remember back a few decades ago when some papers used to hold surveys to determine which comics to keep and get rid of.  Back then, the survey would return a good mix of results, and the result was a majority of comics appealed to a majority of readers.  Today, papers that hold these surveys get results very skewed to the older population, such as the Born Loser, Peanuts, and other comics that this age group grew up with.  More current, 'edgy' comics like Pearls before Swine generally don't appeal to these oldtimers.

As the population ages, and today's younger elderly remain computer-competent, newspapers will no longer have any audience to support them.

I don't think I've ever bought a newspaper (at least for myself). I read them if they're around, but they really have no use these days.

dfwmapper


US81

Quote from: jeffandnicole on February 04, 2015, 07:05:59 PM
Newspapers - the paper version - have somehow survived.  And I'm talking about as a whole, since there are several examples of papers that have gone out of business.  Maybe because their main audience is people over the age of 70 that shy away from the internet.  Lord knows they've gotten rid of editors, photographers, reporters, spellcheckers, punctuation checkers, making sure the story on the front page actually continues on the page it's supposed to continue on checkers, and fact checkers.

I bought a newspaper on Sunday for the first time since probably Thanksgiving, mostly due to the fact that I was going to be sitting around for 8 hours without the ability to watch the Superbowl (at least I could listen to it on the radio), and didn't want to use up all the data on my cell phone as I wouldn't have Wifi access either.

I remember back a few decades ago when some papers used to hold surveys to determine which comics to keep and get rid of.  Back then, the survey would return a good mix of results, and the result was a majority of comics appealed to a majority of readers.  Today, papers that hold these surveys get results very skewed to the older population, such as the Born Loser, Peanuts, and other comics that this age group grew up with.  More current, 'edgy' comics like Pearls before Swine generally don't appeal to these oldtimers.

As the population ages, and today's younger elderly remain computer-competent, newspapers will no longer have any audience to support them. 

It seems a shame to me because print journalism used to seem more complete, more informative, less biased than, say, television news, which already seemed sensationalized and lurid twenty and thirty years ago and has only gotten worse, IMHO. But I think print journalism is dying a slow, painful, lingering but irreversible death, for all the reasons you mentioned above.

3467


1995hoo

Quote from: cjk374 on February 04, 2015, 08:58:04 PM
Quote from: vtk on February 04, 2015, 08:50:38 PM
Pizza Hut. Dine in service is lousy almost everywhere, except for the location where I'm sitting right now. The only reason they still have my business at all is their apparent monopoly on Stuffed Crust. Is that patented or something?

I've seen stuffed crust pizza in the frozen food section of the grocery store...DiGiorno maybe?

DiGiorno does sell a frozen stuffed crust pizza, as we had one last week. It was decent. I have no idea why other delivery joints don't offer that style.




We get the newspaper delivered on weekends because we prefer reading a real paper at breakfast to sitting there with iPads or the like. I occasionally buy a copy on other days, like two weeks ago when I was quoted in an article about the HO/T lanes.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

3467

How about Wholesaling -the ultimate middleman industry . I know Amazon is moving in in a big way It filled a huge niche of moving goods to the right retail source. Is it needed now or not?

kkt

Quote from: dfwmapper on February 04, 2015, 09:55:25 PM
Strip clubs.

Really?  I thought they have been around since, well, the invention of clothes.  I hadn't noticed any of the established strip clubs in Seattle closing.

OCGuy81

On the same note as strip clubs, what about adult stores?

One would think if you had the desire to buy a nudie mag (unlikely, given the Internet), trashy lingerie, or sex toys the anonymity of shopping online would be much preferred.

empirestate

Quote from: OCGuy81 on February 04, 2015, 01:09:46 PM
- Sears.  I GUESS appliance sales keep them alive, but from a clothing and other department store item standpoint, I'm amazed they're still around.

Yeah, I went into one looking for bed linens and other home goods, and the employees kept telling me that, other than the one token item per category that's out on the sales floor, they don't really carry that sort of item. I was like, "You're Sears; your whole point is that you carry everything!" (Their whole point used to be that they carry everything by catalog, but that's Amazon now, so Sears is relegated to its brick-and-mortar function, which they've evidently abandoned.)

Quote from: PHLBOS on February 04, 2015, 01:56:22 PM
Heck, Dave & Busters is kind of like an arcade casino for kids.

Which is ironic, since their business model is to be a kids'-style arcade for adults.


Radio Shack: The only reason I've ever gone in is for little electrical odds-and-ends, things that go on the ends of wires, and so forth. My demand for that product is still as great as it ever was; I don't see why they should be suffering.

J. C. Penney: Actually, they seem to be thriving on being the type of store that everyone thought was dying off just when everyone wished they weren't dying off. They have a reputation for actually carrying a useful selection of clothing in-store, and they've also famously revitalized their print catalog. They may actually be in decent shape.


jeffandnicole

Quote from: empirestate on February 05, 2015, 01:10:52 AM
Radio Shack: The only reason I've ever gone in is for little electrical odds-and-ends, things that go on the ends of wires, and so forth. My demand for that product is still as great as it ever was; I don't see why they should be suffering.

Steve Anderson, who is a roadgeek but also has a hobby as a research analyst (or is it the other way around?), posted an article recently about Radio Shack.  One great point in the article is that Radio Shack should be thriving nowadays because the demand for their traditional products is very high, as there are a lot of do-it-yourselfers out there playing with electronics and such.  Radio Shack though has no interest in employing people that care about the products they sell.  It appears their only training is on how to get the cash register to work.  If someone were to walk into the store and ask for some sort of doohickey, they will be pointed to the doohickey section (which if I remember correctly is several aisle in the back of the store), and the customer is left to find the part themselves.

1995hoo

Quote from: OCGuy81 on February 05, 2015, 12:35:50 AM
On the same note as strip clubs, what about adult stores?

One would think if you had the desire to buy a nudie mag (unlikely, given the Internet), trashy lingerie, or sex toys the anonymity of shopping online would be much preferred.

On the other hand, someone going into a bookstore or sex boutique and paying cash knows there is no record listing his name and address and linking it to the purchase. That's not the case online.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

DandyDan

Quote from: OCGuy81 on February 05, 2015, 12:35:50 AM
On the same note as strip clubs, what about adult stores?

One would think if you had the desire to buy a nudie mag (unlikely, given the Internet), trashy lingerie, or sex toys the anonymity of shopping online would be much preferred.
Strip clubs are actually thriving in certain areas of the country, or at least certain cities where law enforcement is lax.  There will always be a need for non-spousal companionship and strip clubs are probably the safest bet for that.

As for adult stores, oftentimes, the people buying the trashy lingerie are the strippers of the strip clubs.  At least, that is what this one guy I work with who used to have a job at one of those stores says.  In fact, the ones I know about are more about selling lingerie and sex toys than about selling porn, either paper or video.  One other thing about adult stores is that very often, couples often go together to the store, often in a dating scenario.

Just one quick question that goes along with this discussion: Did Blockbuster Video get completely liquidated, or does it exist in some form somewhere?
MORE FUN THAN HUMANLY THOUGHT POSSIBLE

on_wisconsin

Quote from: DandyDan on February 05, 2015, 08:05:04 AMJust one quick question that goes along with this discussion: Did Blockbuster Video get completely liquidated, or does it exist in some form somewhere?

They still have a Roku channel but all the retail stores where shuttered, ISTR.
"Speed does not kill, suddenly becoming stationary... that's what gets you" - Jeremy Clarkson

jeffandnicole

Quote from: DandyDan on February 05, 2015, 08:05:04 AM
Quote from: OCGuy81 on February 05, 2015, 12:35:50 AM
On the same note as strip clubs, what about adult stores?

One would think if you had the desire to buy a nudie mag (unlikely, given the Internet), trashy lingerie, or sex toys the anonymity of shopping online would be much preferred.
Strip clubs are actually thriving in certain areas of the country, or at least certain cities where law enforcement is lax.  There will always be a need for non-spousal companionship and strip clubs are probably the safest bet for that.

As for adult stores, oftentimes, the people buying the trashy lingerie are the strippers of the strip clubs.  At least, that is what this one guy I work with who used to have a job at one of those stores says.  In fact, the ones I know about are more about selling lingerie and sex toys than about selling porn, either paper or video.  One other thing about adult stores is that very often, couples often go together to the store, often in a dating scenario.

Just one quick question that goes along with this discussion: Did Blockbuster Video get completely liquidated, or does it exist in some form somewhere?

What's ironic about your post is that Blockbuster video was designed with a family atmosphere, and never stocked X-rated material.  Yet, you posted about porn and Blockbuster in the same breathe.  Good job!

Anyway, the Blockbuster name is used by Dish Network, in a fairly limited capacity.  There may be a few franchised stores with the 'Blockbuster' name on them, but I imagine they would be in rural areas where cable and online access is minimal.

ajlynch91

One of the only remaining Blockbuster's in the U.S is in Ogden, UT. I know this because I used to go to college there (In Ogden, not the Blockbuster), apparently it's an independent franchised store as mentioned earlier. I almost want to go there simply for the nostalgia.

I can't see how K-Mart is still in business. I've never been to a K-Mart that wasn't a trash dump. Sears at the very least does have appliances.

Zeffy

Quote from: ajlynch91 on February 05, 2015, 09:07:19 AM
I can't see how K-Mart is still in business. I've never been to a K-Mart that wasn't a trash dump. Sears at the very least does have appliances.

The K-Mart in Hillsborough closed years ago. I remember the last time I went into it how ghetto the place looked. Like, it was bad. I thought Walmart could be bad, but damn, K-Mart has it beat! A Planet Fitness is replacing the abandoned building where K-Mart used to stand. Personally, I would've preferred a bowling alley. That could be a huge boon to Hillsborough.

Quote from: 1995hoo on February 04, 2015, 10:22:28 PM
DiGiorno does sell a frozen stuffed crust pizza, as we had one last week. It was decent. I have no idea why other delivery joints don't offer that style.

DiGiorno has the best frozen pizzas you can buy. They taste so good, sometimes even better than some of the pizza places around here.
Life would be boring if we didn't take an offramp every once in a while

A weird combination of a weather geek, roadgeek, car enthusiast and furry mixed with many anxiety related disorders

vtk

Quote from: DandyDan on February 05, 2015, 08:05:04 AM
As for adult stores, ... the ones I know about are more about selling lingerie and sex toys than about selling porn, either paper or video.  One other thing about adult stores is that very often, couples often go together to the store, often in a dating scenario.

Yes.  And it seems a lot of people would prefer to closely inspect a sex toy (to the extent it can be inspected through the packaging) and the packaging itself before buying.  That's difficult to do online.
Wait, it's all Ohio? Always has been.

corco

Quote from: kkt on February 04, 2015, 11:54:47 PM
Quote from: dfwmapper on February 04, 2015, 09:55:25 PM
Strip clubs.

Really?  I thought they have been around since, well, the invention of clothes.  I hadn't noticed any of the established strip clubs in Seattle closing.


RIP, the Lusty Lady

kkt

Quote from: corco on February 05, 2015, 09:49:15 AM
Quote from: kkt on February 04, 2015, 11:54:47 PM
Quote from: dfwmapper on February 04, 2015, 09:55:25 PM
Strip clubs.
Really?  I thought they have been around since, well, the invention of clothes.  I hadn't noticed any of the established strip clubs in Seattle closing.
RIP, the Lusty Lady

Oh, you're right, I'd forgotten them.

SidS1045

Quote from: jeffandnicole on February 04, 2015, 07:05:59 PM
Newspapers - the paper version - have somehow survived.

Survived, maybe...but their old dead-trees business model is on life support.  Just about every "paper" I know of has a web site, and most of them have put up a pay wall.  Several newspapers in large cities (The New Orleans Times-Picayune and The Philadelphia Inquirer, to name two) no longer publish in print every day.  Even The New York Times now derives more revenue from online subscriptions than it does from advertising.

With computer classes being given in senior living facilities and computers coming out which are geared toward the elderly, I'd give the dead-tree newspaper about another decade before it's effectively gone.
"A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves." - Edward R. Murrow

OCGuy81

QuoteNewspapers - the paper version - have somehow survived.

I think the ONLY time I read a paper is when I'm staying in a hotel that doles out copies of USA Today.



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