Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

Back on 20 April, I decided to finally see "Logan" before it left first-run theaters. As it happened, I was at the beach, and as also often happens, the Myrtle Beach theaters had their own notions of what was "current". In the end, I had to run to Conway to catch the show.

As I overplanned the transit-time, I had a few minutes to drive around the shopping area near the theater, and the Radio Shack above caught my eye. I knew they had had a second bankruptcy by then, so I wasn't surprised to see it closing, but the chain kind of slipped out of my mind again after that, and I didn't really have any idea how things were proceding. 'Not well', is the answer:

Over the Memorial Day weekend, RadioShack—which filed for bankruptcy twice in two years—closed over 1,000 stores, leaving just 70 corporate locations and 500 dealer stores in operation across the U.S. Throughout the weekend, the consumer electronics retailer announced a liquidation sale that played out on social media. Social media represents a new plot twist for America's dying retailers: How do you toast a brand's final days when the world is watching?

RadioShack opted for unadulterated bleakness. The company's social media handle on Twitter shared photos that depicted the sale of store fixtures, $25 grab bags stuffed with items pieced at $5 apiece, and deeply discounted printers. Here are some tweets that highlighted the carnage.

Take that in for a second. I don't know if it's more surprising that they still had over 1000 stores, or that they closed over 1000 stores in a weekend, but it's impressive in its own grim way.

The dealer stores will probably make do; I think they are mostly small market independant electronics stores that basically use the Radio Shack affiliation to signal that they're a step up from Uncle Bob's convenience store that has phone chargers. I don't see what the point of a corporate store is at all with just 70 though.

Patrick Stewart deserves a Best Supporting Actor Oscar, by the way.

Seen at the Dutch Square Hardee's by commenter uscnurse

UPDATE 23 May 2017 -- Well I'm re-writing this post because I was wrong about Carolina Wiring being closed. I was fooled by the fact that the trucks weren't there, but as I learned in a nice note from Travis at that operation, they are working on the building, and are still very much around.

So if you need "anything from Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) systems to Dedicated Home Theaters", you can get up with them at 803-748-9473 and wiredbycws.com.

I still like these old Dairy Queen buildings, and if you saw Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 then you know this DQ design featured in a key scene:

Just a reminder that Saturday is Free Comic Book Day 2017. Click the link or image to find local stores participating.

They're still crabs, and it will be a tough interview. Prepare accordingly.

Interesting article on Bloomberg:

Desperate Malls Turn to Concerts and Food Trucks

Malls are fighting for shoppers with one thing their web rivals can’t offer: parking lots.

With customer traffic sagging, U.S. retail landlords are using their sprawling concrete lots to host events such as carnivals, concerts and food-truck festivals. They’re aiming to lure visitors with experiences that can’t be replicated online -- and then get them inside the properties to spend some money.

“Events draw people to come to the shopping center,” said Craig Herkimer, whose company, KevaWorks Inc., is working with big landlords including GGP Inc. and Simon Property Group Inc. to produce outdoor events. “They generate revenue for the owner and offer a chance for cross-promotion, so they can try and drive more customers into the stores.”

I've not noticed anything of this sort in Columbia. To me Dutch Square & Columbia Mall would be iffy, but it seems like a natural concept for the top deck at Richland Mall, whereas in the event all they have on top is a closed garden center and at the side some sort of Farmers' Market that I've never actually seen open.

A flawed man, but no Chuck Berry -- no Rock & Roll. Go Johnny Go.

You will have noticed the upgrades to the various First Citizens branches around town. In this case I actually think I like the new branding better than the old, which is definitely not always a given.

Those of you trying to comment since Sunday last will have noticed that you couldn't. I couldn't post either. Hopefully all is resolved now and normal posting will resume.