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Does anyone even remember Circuit City?

Started by ColossalBlocks, April 03, 2017, 11:24:06 PM

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ColossalBlocks

I was in school around the time Circuit City shuttered. Damn that was sad. I still have some products from Circuit City, Altec Lansing speakers, and a surge protector.

Does anyone still remember Circuit City?
I am inactive for a while now my dudes. Good associating with y'all.

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Rothman

Quote from: ColossalBlocks on April 03, 2017, 11:24:06 PM
I was in school around the time Circuit City shuttered. Damn that was sad. I still have some products from Circuit City, Altec Lansing speakers, and a surge protector.

Does anyone still remember Circuit City?

Yep.  Not sad to have seen it go.  By the end, it was outgunned and outmaneuvered.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position(s) of NYSDOT.

Max Rockatansky

#2
Quote from: Rothman on April 03, 2017, 11:26:40 PM
Quote from: ColossalBlocks on April 03, 2017, 11:24:06 PM
I was in school around the time Circuit City shuttered. Damn that was sad. I still have some products from Circuit City, Altec Lansing speakers, and a surge protector.

Does anyone still remember Circuit City?

Yep.  Not sad to have seen it go.  By the end, it was outgunned and outmaneuvered.

Their stores were way outdated by the time the company went under.  I do kind of miss the 1980s feel that places like RadioShack, Circuit City, and even Sears seemed to have...  Too bad most of them stayed stuff in the 1980s in terms of business models and store layouts...all of it came off as low brow and tacky in the modern retail environment.

davewiecking

Absolutely. Bought my first stereo components there with lawn mowing money. Actually was going to get some stuff at a place called Custom Hi-Fi, but it was closed when I went by one evening. Next afternoon, it had a Circuit City sign on the door. 1973, or maybe 1974.

OracleUsr

Bought my first component receiver and DVD player there, and I think my father bought me my first computer (a VIC-20) back in 1982 from there.

I remember in fact them demonstrating the Mattel Intellivision system with the voice module, and when you hit the reset button, it would say "Welcome to...B17  BOMBER" (and B17 BOMBER was said in the goofiest voice I had ever heard)
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Max Rockatansky

Quote from: OracleUsr on April 03, 2017, 11:55:55 PM
Bought my first component receiver and DVD player there, and I think my father bought me my first computer (a VIC-20) back in 1982 from there.

I remember in fact them demonstrating the Mattel Intellivision system with the voice module, and when you hit the reset button, it would say "Welcome to...B17  BOMBER" (and B17 BOMBER was said in the goofiest voice I had ever heard)

BEEEEE SEVENTEEN BAULMER?


plain

Circuit City was based here in Richmond, with its headquarters at the intersection of Thalbro and Westmoreland Streets, just outside city limits. I remember when it started going downhill for them, mostly due to prices and older stores. While I did buy some stuff from there, it didn't really affect me when they shut down as I was buying my car audio gear and such elsewhere. Even though the metro lost a Fortune 500 company, they did manage to create another company during its heyday that went on to become a F500 company in its own right (of course I'm talking about CarMax).
Newark born, Richmond bred

jeffandnicole

Their biggest undoing was getting rid of their full time employees and going with nearly a full staff of part-timers.  Not only were they less experienced and less knowledgeable, the public didn't appreciate what the store had done to their employees.  It was a massive fatal blow that they never recovered from.

1995hoo

The biggest thing I remember about Circuit City is how they'd try to sell you an extended warranty even on a $20 Walkman.
"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.

ET21

Yeah I do. I'd end up going to Best buy because of better quality and selection.
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Henry

Of course I do! The one thing I remember most is the tagline "Where service is state-of-the-art!"
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spooky

Quote from: jeffandnicole on April 04, 2017, 06:02:27 AM
Their biggest undoing was getting rid of their full time employees and going with nearly a full staff of part-timers.  Not only were they less experienced and less knowledgeable, the public didn't appreciate what the store had done to their employees.  It was a massive fatal blow that they never recovered from.

I think their biggest undoing was Best Buy. In New England we had a number of local small electronics chains, then we had Circuit City, then Best Buy moved into the area with better prices and more selection, and then we didn't have Circuit City any more.

The Nature Boy

I remember seeing them, I don't think I ever stepped foot in one though.

tribar

Considering it only closed about 7-8 years ago, I think it's safe to say most of us still remember it ;).

nexus73

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on April 04, 2017, 12:24:32 AM
Quote from: OracleUsr on April 03, 2017, 11:55:55 PM
Bought my first component receiver and DVD player there, and I think my father bought me my first computer (a VIC-20) back in 1982 from there.

I remember in fact them demonstrating the Mattel Intellivision system with the voice module, and when you hit the reset button, it would say "Welcome to...B17  BOMBER" (and B17 BOMBER was said in the goofiest voice I had ever heard)

BEEEEE SEVENTEEN BAULMER?



Now if you want a game that has a crazy scoring system, Intellivision's Utopia would give you a 100 if you had all factories and forts while having reduced the population to zero through pollution and starvation. 

I bought mine for $300 when it first came out, added NFL Football and along with my best friend of the time. we went for hours and hours, wiping out our thumbs in the process.  One day a friend of his came by and gave us a complete clocking in NBA Basketball as he had mastered the game's fast break. 

Fast forward a little over 10 years: The games and systems were being sold at giveaway prices at thrift stores.  My youngest brother liked Intellivision so between the two of us keeping our eyes peeled, we were able to fill in a lot of gaps for missing games. 

Today I have an Intellivision games collection disc for the Playstation 2. 

Rick
US 101 is THE backbone of the Pacific coast from Bandon OR to Willits CA.  Industry, tourism and local traffic would be gone or severely crippled without it being in functioning condition in BOTH states.

epzik8

I sure do. I was almost 14 years old when Circuit City went under. I had a Circuit City near me in Bel Air, Maryland (which is a Baltimore suburb). It was eventually converted into an HHGregg, and now the HHGregg is about to close too!
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1995hoo

The game actually said, "Mattel Electronics presents–[weird higher-pitched voice] B-17 Bommmmmmmber" (last word drawn out a bit).

We had three of those Intellivoice games–that one, Space Spartans, and Bomb Squad. I liked Bomb Squad best. You had to follow the spoken instructions to defuse a bomb.
"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.

jp the roadgeek

Most of them in my area were replaced by PC Richard.
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renegade

Oh, yes!  I bought a Maytag dishwasher that, sadly, I had to leave behind when I moved to my new house. 

I also bought my first cellphone there, back when Nextel was a thing.
Don’t ask me how I know.  Just understand that I do.

Roadgeek Adam

I might have found this thread a lot more interesting if you replaced Circuit City with Nobody Beats the Wiz. That would bring back some memories for me. My family shopped there a lot more than we did at Circuit City. (Proximity bias, probably.)
Adam Seth Moss
M.A. History, Western Illinois University 2015-17
B.A. History, Montclair State University 2013-15
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Max Rockatansky

Quote from: Roadgeek Adam on April 04, 2017, 02:39:22 PM
I might have found this thread a lot more interesting if you replaced Circuit City with Nobody Beats the Wiz. That would bring back some memories for me. My family shopped there a lot more than we did at Circuit City. (Proximity bias, probably.)



Programable VCR $217 and a 19 inch TV for the low, low 1986 era asking price....nobody Beats the Wiz!

Roadgeek Adam

Quote from: Max Rockatansky on April 04, 2017, 02:48:14 PM
Quote from: Roadgeek Adam on April 04, 2017, 02:39:22 PM
I might have found this thread a lot more interesting if you replaced Circuit City with Nobody Beats the Wiz. That would bring back some memories for me. My family shopped there a lot more than we did at Circuit City. (Proximity bias, probably.)



Programable VCR $217 and a 19 inch TV for the low, low 1986 era asking price....nobody Beats the Wiz!

That one's a little bit older than I am. Hard to believe it's been 14 years since they closed. I remember the one at Menlo Park Mall after it closed that had been turned into some temporary pseudo-flea market. Next to it was a Zany Brainy store (a toy and game store that I loved.). That Zany Brainy store was actually the site of a road meet lunch (specifically the Sunday lunch of the NYC meet in 2014.)
Adam Seth Moss
M.A. History, Western Illinois University 2015-17
B.A. History, Montclair State University 2013-15
A.A. History & Education - Middlesex (County) College 2009-13

1995hoo

The Wiz stores I remember around here were record stores that didn't sell other electronics. I know the stores in New York were a lot bigger.
"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.

Max Rockatansky

#23
The Wiz used to advertise a ton in the Detroit market back in the 1980s.  Really there was a variance from the record store sized outlet to the full-sized Circuit City type retail building.  I remember distinctly trying to fast forward through VHS tapes (which required getting up until we got a controller with a 3 foot cord) since they would bleed onto whatever thing on TV that we were trying to watch later. 

Incidentally those programmable VCRs were a huge deal when they came out.  Back in those days you had to put a 6 hour VHS tape in from the second you left the house and just hope for the best of you wanted to record a sports event.  Sometimes the event would go long and your tape wouldn't make it, or the power would go out which stopped the recording....which in my observation was way more frequent of occurrence in those days.  It was certainly easier to avoid getting the score/results prior to the net since all you had to do was not talk to your neighbors or listen to AM radio. 

Brandon

Quote from: Roadgeek Adam on April 04, 2017, 02:39:22 PM
I might have found this thread a lot more interesting if you replaced Circuit City with Nobody Beats the Wiz. That would bring back some memories for me. My family shopped there a lot more than we did at Circuit City. (Proximity bias, probably.)

One was national, the other I (and most likely most people) only knew from watching hockey games on TV when they were in New York City.

That said, I remember the Circuit City sales people being rather pushy, pushing for us to buy a Toshiba VCR when we went in there.  Didn't go back much, but I did get a desktop computer (HP) when they were going out of business.  We preferred to go elsewhere for electronics, and later, appliances.
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