Dick Smith in store decline

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#1027726 19-Apr-2014 14:59

DSE reminds me of kmart, except instead of how kmart have their bottom of the worst quality self branded products at a good price, Dick smith are pricing them at the same level as quality products from actual brands, or in the case of their cables and computer hardware even higher than the generic stuff at the likes of jaycar.

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Dunnersfella

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#1028085 20-Apr-2014 10:42

Home brands exist at full price, solely so they can have a "40% off sale".
DSE certainly aren't the only company that do this, it's just that when you ask a sales person for a cash deal they say "I can't alter the price, I'd get in trouble with head office".
Which, is why people go elsewhere.
*sigh*

johnr

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#1028088 20-Apr-2014 11:06

SteveON: I remember when DSE was all about funway and electronics.

Childhood memories

DarthKermit

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#1028109 20-Apr-2014 12:12

I can remember when DSE was owned by its namesake.

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khull

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#1028144 20-Apr-2014 13:50

SteveON: I remember when DSE was all about funway and electronics.

Yeah went in looking for a simple electronic switch to fix a bunged up PC case and left disappointed

k1w1k1d

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#1028159 20-Apr-2014 14:38

Was a customer of David Reid and then Dick Smith after they bought DR out. Over the years they have moved away from the electronic components etc. and gone into trying to be another Harvey Norman or Noel Leeming. Still occasionally go into their shops when passing, or they have a really good special. Must admit that I bought a Home Theatre system from them a couple of months ago.

Spend a lot more time, and money, at Jaycars now.

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JimmyH

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#1028168 20-Apr-2014 15:29

Even when they have a good special, they have removed the option on the website to see which shops have stock (why?), and frequently there is no stock.

So I'm unlikely to bother making a special trip, even if they were advertising something I wanted.

Plus the staff they have now no longer seem as knowledgeable as they used to be. A few months ago they told a relative a load of rubbish about a product in an attempt to sell it (ie pushing a freeview terrestrial unit as "this will do what you want" to someone who had explicitly told them they only had satellite reception).

Geektastic

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#1028170 20-Apr-2014 15:36

TBH I am not even sure what they are - and I suspect neither are they.

They sell some of everything, specialise in nothing, do not offer renowned customer service or pricing, tend to look shabby and staff rarely seem to have more knowledge than customers.

When you reach that point, your next call should be the partner at PWC who specialises in receivership!

wakaridnnz

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#1028177 20-Apr-2014 15:44

I really do miss the old Dick Smith shop, it used to be one of my happy places.

In Dunedin the shop used to be opposite Countdown supermarket so I'd sneak in quite often and look at wire, soldering irons and the bargain bin for all sorts of good stuff.

It's since moved to the main drag for the foot traffic I guess, but it's just hopeless now.

GeekGuy

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#1028210 20-Apr-2014 16:26

DarthKermit: I can remember when DSE was owned by its namesake.

I can remember applying for a job with them when they opened their new warehouse in Ryde, Sydney back in 1979/80.

raytaylor

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#1028262 20-Apr-2014 17:47

I needed a new ipod for the gym - went into the napier store to buy a nano.
They had only two ipods in stock, and they were the display models.

They are understaffed and every single time I go in there, i end up spending a half hour at least helping other people which is what they should have staff doing.

I too spend more money at jaycar now.

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#1028279 20-Apr-2014 17:57

I have a workmate who likes to contribute to the decline. He selects the items he would like to purchase then proceeds to the counter, if no staff member is available to assist or even acknowledge the persons waiting, the items get left piled on the counter and he departs.

In my experience this is not even necessary when an employee tells you you may as well leave because they can't find any of the five items showing in stock.

Fred99

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#1028285 20-Apr-2014 18:13

I can remember about 10 years ago looking at buying at DS franchise (in a smaller centre). The books looked pretty good - but jeesh - I'm glad I didn't. The terms of the franchise deal put me off.
I had a "gap year" (as they call it now) and worked at a place called John Gilbert & Co in Anzac Ave, Akl. Now that place was good if you wanted components. Nothing pre-packed in those days - if you wanted one 1/4 watt resistor, you'd find it in a bin, about 2c each IIRC. Customers would of course pick up a few dozen, inspect them, take one, and drop the rest back in the wrong bins. Stocktake at that place was a nightmare.

insane

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#1028291 20-Apr-2014 18:22

Nothing pre-packed in those days - if you wanted one 1/4 watt resistor, you'd find it in a bin, about 2c each IIRC. Customers would of course pick up a few dozen, inspect them, take one, and drop the rest back in the wrong bins. Stocktake at that place was a nightmare.

Ahh yes... I worked at DSE during the transition between loose components and pre-packed ones. It's just as well though as none of the new staff who were hired could even differentiate between a resistor and a diode. And you're right, stock take took hours and hours and was done over two days, one piece at a time. By my 3rd year the selection was so reduced we had to send shoppers off to Jaycar.

DravidDavid

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#1028301 20-Apr-2014 19:13

I did the rounds Last Sunday looking for a Galaxy S4. I walked in to Dick Smith Electronics and there were three or so people on. One of them stood at the counter, briefly glanced at me and looked down again. This is the time I actually wanted someone to come and talk to me. I wandered and found the other employee talking to a couple who wanted a computer. He was busy telling them how this i3 office machine with integrated graphics would "run Battlefield 3 and 4 just fine."

I felt a bit sick replaying his last sentence in my mind as I walked out.

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