Businesses You're Amazed Are Still Around

[jeffandnicole]

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.

The Philly Inquirer is absolutely published in print every day.

[PHLBOS]

Several newspapers in large cities (The New Orleans Times-Picayune and The Philadelphia Inquirer, to name two) no longer publish in print every day.

The Philly Inquirer is absolutely published in print every day.

I concur; I know this one first hand because I have a 7-day home delivery subscription for such.

[formulanone]

Mitsubishi automobile dealerships. I know their sales are decent in the Pacific Rim, but the've been moribund in the Americas for the past decade.

[PHLBOS]

Mitsubishi automobile dealerships. I know their sales are decent in the Pacific Rim, but the've been moribund in the Americas for the past decade.

They're still around in the East Coast.  At Philly's Auto Show (taking place this week); there's a Mitsubishi section in the main exhibit hall with all the other makes (except Lexus & Mercedes, which are located in a different room).

[roadman65]

Telemarketers!  And the fact that the FCC gave them an extra hour to call your home and annoy you as it used to be a big no no to call before 9 AM.  Now they can bug you as early as 8 AM.

[texaskdog]

FYE, the high-priced music/movie store.

Buybacks recently opened up.  Who goes to the store to buy CDs & DVDs anymore?

And they opened up in a former blockbuster to boot.  I worked at Blockbuster 2007-2008 and was surprised they were still open then.

[empirestate]

Newspapers - 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.

Print newspapers, particularly the tabloid variety, are still big in NYC, where they're much easier to read on a subway than anything requiring the Internet.

[roadman65]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

[Henry]

Mitsubishi automobile dealerships. I know their sales are decent in the Pacific Rim, but the've been moribund in the Americas for the past decade.

They're still around in the East Coast.  At Philly's Auto Show (taking place this week); there's a Mitsubishi section in the main exhibit hall with all the other makes (except Lexus & Mercedes, which are located in a different room).

Speaking of cars, I'm amazed that Lincoln dealerships are still in operation today. The death of Mercury might've put the writing on the wall, but it's comforting to see that Ford is trying to keep its luxury division alive for as long as it can, even with it being a distant second to GM's more internationally-minded Cadillac marque in domestic luxury sales.

[kkt]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

It's not the tellers, it's the bank officers.

[empirestate]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

Why, to replenish our stock of $2 bills, of course!

[thenetwork]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

Where I live, there are several branches of Wells Fargo Bank.  What surprises me are the sheer number of teller windows inside of the branches and number of drive-thru window lanes they have.  For example, one Wells Fargo has no less than 10 drive-thru lanes, all are "open" during business hours, and yet you see maybe one or two cars at any given time.  Why have all of those windows/lanes if they are not used or staffed?   And in the case of the drive-thrus, you may have 10 lanes, but you still only have one or two tellers taking customers in the order they receive the "tubes".  The money they could save by getting rid of those extra power-using tubes and lights.

Oh, and minor rant.  Why do you put an ATM in the same lane as an active drive-up teller lane???  I hate having to wait 5+ minutes for the person in front of me to finish gabbing with the teller about non-banking issues when I just need to grab a quick $20 from the machine.

[PHLBOS]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

What's even weirder is that despite all of the above; many banks have been adding branch offices this past decade and I'm not just referring to stand-alone ATMs.

Mitsubishi automobile dealerships. I know their sales are decent in the Pacific Rim, but the've been moribund in the Americas for the past decade.

They're still around in the East Coast.  At Philly's Auto Show (taking place this week); there's a Mitsubishi section in the main exhibit hall with all the other makes (except Lexus & Mercedes, which are located in a different room).

Speaking of cars, I'm amazed that Lincoln dealerships are still in operation today. The death of Mercury might've put the writing on the wall, but it's comforting to see that Ford is trying to keep its luxury division alive for as long as it can, even with it being a distant second to GM's more internationally-minded Cadillac marque in domestic luxury sales.

For better - for worse, one of the first things that happened when Mercury died was that the majority of Lincoln-Mercury dealers consolidated/merged with nearby Ford dealers.  The downside of such meant that every Lincoln model now had a direct Ford model competiting with it under the same roof.

[formulanone]

Mitsubishi automobile dealerships. I know their sales are decent in the Pacific Rim, but the've been moribund in the Americas for the past decade.

They're still around in the East Coast.  At Philly's Auto Show (taking place this week); there's a Mitsubishi section in the main exhibit hall with all the other makes (except Lexus & Mercedes, which are located in a different room).

Speaking of cars, I'm amazed that Lincoln dealerships are still in operation today. The death of Mercury might've put the writing on the wall, but it's comforting to see that Ford is trying to keep its luxury division alive for as long as it can, even with it being a distant second to GM's more internationally-minded Cadillac marque in domestic luxury sales.

Many Lincoln dealers aligned themselves to Ford stores as Mercury became defunct. Standalone Lincoln dealerships are really slow places, although some existing Mercury buyers still service their vehicles at those spots. In places with a mix of forty-somethings to (many) retirees, they still thrive on their own. Those Grand Marquis' were bread-and-butter for those locations, but no more.

Still not as slow as the Mitsu dealers I occasionally go to!

[1995hoo]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

What do "all-electronic" people do when they need a cashier's check or certified check? (I needed one or the other last year for the final payment on a loan, for example.)

[Pete from Boston]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

Because tellers are not all one goes to a bank for.  There's a lot of paperwork that's impractical to do without sitting down with a banker.  I wish there weren't, but there is.  And what of safe deposit boxes?

[sbeaver44]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

What do "all-electronic" people do when they need a cashier's check or certified check? (I needed one or the other last year for the final payment on a loan, for example.)

I have a credit union, a regular bank, and an "all-electronic" bank through Capital One 360.  I can go on their site and "fill out" the check online and they'll mail it I think the next day, they say allow 5 business days for receipt.  I believe if it isn't cashed within 90 days the funds are returned to my account, but I haven't encountered that.  It's nice to have both because there are certainly inherent advantages to a physical branch, but I can move the money back and forth between accounts, especially my brokerage who is also owned by Capital One, with relative ease.  I do also have a physical checkbook through them.

[OCGuy81]

Can we make the same argument of the post office that we make for banks?

You can print labels, schedule pickups, print postage.

What purpose does the post office really serve?

[renegade]

As far as I am concerned, Radio Shack took a big shit when they started charging for print catalogs.

[1995hoo]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

What do "all-electronic" people do when they need a cashier's check or certified check? (I needed one or the other last year for the final payment on a loan, for example.)

I have a credit union, a regular bank, and an "all-electronic" bank through Capital One 360.  I can go on their site and "fill out" the check online and they'll mail it I think the next day, they say allow 5 business days for receipt.  I believe if it isn't cashed within 90 days the funds are returned to my account, but I haven't encountered that.  It's nice to have both because there are certainly inherent advantages to a physical branch, but I can move the money back and forth between accounts, especially my brokerage who is also owned by Capital One, with relative ease.  I do also have a physical checkbook through them.

That doesn't answer the question. I have online banking as well, but when, for example, I made the final payment on my second mortgage, the lender explicitly said a payment from online banking was not acceptable–the final payment had to be by cashier's check, certified check, or wire transfer. (I chose cashier's check because the other two carried fees.) As I said before, how do you do that sort of thing if you don't have an actual bank branch to visit?

(I do most of my banking electronically, though I don't always use mobile check deposit. Some checks exceed the limit. I also don't use it if the handwriting on the check is hard to read. I figure if I stick it in the ATM, they'll have it and can review it right away if there's an issue, whereas if I use mobile deposit they might contact me and ask me to stick it in an ATM.)

[sbeaver44]

I'm amazed Radio Shack made is this far as well.  I had friends who worked there, they treated the staff miserably, there were hardly any customers, and it was $11 for something you could easily get for $5 elsewhere.  As a kid in the 90s, I loved going in Radio Shack with all the neat hobby stuff and RC toys.  They tried the push for cell phones, but I don't know anyone who ever bought them there, and it was annoying (I realize the poor staff was required to hit I think 1 in 20 sales to be a cell phone contract) to be asked about your cell phone provider and contract status every time you went there.  The only good thing I can say about RSH in recent times is their clearances, at least locally, have been killer.  Will probably go in for nostalgia/see if anything is worth picking up at bargain prices.

And I would have said SkyMall, but I see that has declared bankruptcy.  Oh look, $69 for something I can get on Amazon for $29, and also, it's not even like I can pick it up at the airport or anything.  The catalogs were fun to read, though.  (Airport shopping also is of interest to me, since the general strategy is to take as little luggage with you as possible, and anything you buy at the airport would add to that, not to mention the usual captive-audience price premium.  I do get this to a certain degree, souvenirs, food, necessities, etc.)

[NE2]

Oh, and minor rant.  Why do you put an ATM in the same lane as an active drive-up teller lane???  I hate having to wait 5+ minutes for the person in front of me to finish gabbing with the teller about non-banking issues when I just need to grab a quick $20 from the machine.

Because you're too lazy to park and walk over to the ATM.

[jeffandnicole]

Banks

I consider myself relatively techie, but just the other day I finally used my phone to deposit a check.  As my wife owns a business she gets several checks from customers.  I can easily deposit them via phone, but I choose to go to the bank anyway.  At least at my bank, I get a few lollipops everytime I go! lol  And I use one of the banks that have 7 day branch banking, which is a nice thing, even though I rarely go on the weekends.  But, in those rare instances when I have to access the safety deposit box, I don't have to time my entire life around the few hours the bank is open and I'm not at work...I can easily go during the day Saturday or Sunday.

About those checks: I'm still surprised people use them.  It was only the past year or two where there was a noticeable decline in checks at my wife's business, which is a small business.  Most of those people simply use credit/debit cards instead.  Why it took them so long to convert, I have no idea.

Paychecks

And on the same subject, my employer now requires everyone to get their regular pay via direct deposit, and reviewing your paystub can only be done via the internet.  If they don't have a banking account (or don't want direct deposit), then they get their funds loaded on a card. 

Yet, my overtime checks are only on traditional paper.  I don't have the option to get the deposited directly.  Go figure.

Post Offices

Internet shopping was going to be the killer of the Post Office.  Internet shopping is what is keeping the post office alive.  All those purchases have to be sent somehow.  While FedEx (which has a partnership with the USPS) and UPS handle a lot of those deliveries, the USPS has its share of shipments as well.

Rarely a day goes by when I don't get mail.  Much of it is ads or junk though.  I only mail one payment a month, for the mortgage payment, so I rarely need stamps.

People still use those PO Boxes too.

[PHLBOS]

About those checks: I'm still surprised people use them.  It was only the past year or two where there was a noticeable decline in checks at my wife's business, which is a small business.  Most of those people simply use credit/debit cards instead.  Why it took them so long to convert, I have no idea.

A similar discussion/debate regarding paper checks was made in another thread several months ago and the general concessus was that there are some scenarios where a paper check is still required; paying one's rent or mortgage was one of them.  Where I live, a paper check is required as a means of payment; no alternatives nor substitutions.

Additionally, if one contributes (monetarily) to their place of worship; many places only accept either cash or (paper) check, nothing else.

While many businesses (like your wife's) & customers have gone mostly paperless; not all of them have and some (for legal/paper trail reasons) may never go all electronic.

Given the recent hackings that have taken place at several store chains (Target, etc.); using a paper check might be a safer way to purchase, outside of cash.

[roadman65]

How about branch offices of banks.  Since we all have direct deposits, ATMs, and even do banking from our smart phones and PCs why do people even need to use a human teller anymore.

What do "all-electronic" people do when they need a cashier's check or certified check? (I needed one or the other last year for the final payment on a loan, for example.)

I was actually being sarcastic, as too much is done on line, electronically, and everything going to self serve. It makes you wonder why we stayed this far from becoming completely automated.

Like you said, and everyone else here, that certain things we need cannot be replaced still.