Ultimate Electronics Going out of business

ferant316

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So another store falls victim to the bad economy. Includes all 46 stores, liquidation sales start February 12th and all doors closed by April 15th at the latest.
 
No surprise to me. Their ads as of lately have been vague on what their "sale" prices are... this coming off of their previous ads which had their smarmy president (or whatever) brag about how they watch the competition's prices every day so they can beat them. From the few times I looked at their website and compared to say Best Buy they did beat their prices... by a whole cent.
 
In Ultimates defense their websites prices rarely matched in store. For example had the Sony KDL-55NX810 at $1799.99 while lowest it's been at Best Buy is $2399.99. Piss poor marketing, upper management, and the fact GE pulled funding to bailout Borders did them in. Take away a companies $125 million in spending power, in the fast moving electronics world puts them out of relevancy fast because they can't get new products as vendors won't ship to a small chain on open credit like they will Wal Mart or Best Buy.
 
I know the store's name, but can't place it.

Sad to see them go. Not surprised though, since if my memory is correct they seemed to be the store that would advertise stuff all the time at prices that was like 40-50% cheaper than their competition. Tough to succeed when your profits are getting destroyed.
 
[quote name='ferant316']In Ultimates defense their websites prices rarely matched in store. For example had the Sony KDL-55NX810 at $1799.99 while lowest it's been at Best Buy is $2399.99. Piss poor marketing, upper management, and the fact GE pulled funding to bailout Borders did them in. Take away a companies $125 million in spending power, in the fast moving electronics world puts them out of relevancy fast because they can't get new products as vendors won't ship to a small chain on open credit like they will Wal Mart or Best Buy.[/QUOTE]

To be honest Ultimate has been nearly out of relevancy for a long time now. In fact if it wasn't for those occasional ads I saw on my NBC station here I would have forgotten they existed at all.... and their ads to be honest reeked of Circuit City's last ads before going out of business.

Remember One Price Promise anyone? Yeah it was a good idea but to use that as the main focal point of a company's last ditch effort to stay in business... yeah you can see how that's a failure of an idea. CC wasted so much money on that as well from the sign-age around the stores (that woman model they used was ugly as sin), the TV ads, hell I heard they even decorated their corporate offices from top to bottom with the whole One Price Promise campaign.

The funniest part about the whole campaign was the flyer's that were given out to customers promoting this. Not only was this a huge waste of paper but on top of that most people already assumed the store and website were the same price so it was a big mega epic fail waste of time. Oh and most of the flyer's were just trashed around the store since customers just dumped them on the floor.

Sorry for dragging this into CC's dying days but I can't help but to see too many similarities between these two companies and how they are going out of business.
 
They just opened one near me a few months ago too. It was like Best Buy without the blue shirts or selection. I never saw anything remotely cheap there. Can't say I'm glad to see a company go out of business but can't say I see any reason for them to even be operating.
 
I'm not sure if you'll know, but did an outside company buy out the rest of their stock and take over the liquidation sale? I feel like when that happens the company does a huge markup on the remaining stock then "discounts" it to 30, 50... percent and it isn't much cheaper than you'll find anywhere else.
 
I checked in on this on thursday. The store was definitely not 30% off. Games were only 10%, movies were 20% and laptops were barely marked down at all. Maybe its just my store. Plus they're doing the same thing as Circuit City when they went out of business. They marked up the original prices before they marked everything down.
 
Are there any in CT? Seems rather regional. Oh well, I'm sure they are blaming Wal-Mart like the rest of em. Can't keep up with the low prices blah blah blah
 
i went to one of these stores in jersey. IMO they were never worth even stepping into, they always had "##% off" sales going all the time and they always kept their stock well above msrp, theyre very much like PC Richard except with better stock.
 
I bought a car audio system there once. After checking around for the stuff I wanted they were the cheapest. Hell they even redid the box they made for me because the sales person didn't like it. At that time they were great. Last time I went in they were shit. I will hold off till atleast 50% and then check into a 3d tv.
 
[quote name='Greatwhitecoley']Ya checked Tucson and it isn't marked down for didly yet. Figure myself or a buddy will check in from time to time to see when the real drops start.[/QUOTE]

Good to know... saved me a trip. Interesting to see another CAG in our neck of the woods. Didn't think there were too many in Tucson!
 
I'll keep you guys updated with % off. Right now:
TVs, 3D, BD players - 10%
Audio - 15% (except Bose and Focal 5%)
furniture/mounts - 20%
appliances - 10%
movies - 20%
Games - 10%
Cables - 30%
PCs - 10%

No idea of the next drop, just started Thursday so at the soonest next Thursday. All stores closed April 15th at the latest.
 
I'll be keeping an eye on their 3D content. The Panasonic 3D Blu-Ray player (DMP-BDT100) and Panasonic 3D Ready Sound Systems w/ Blu-Ray Player (SC-BTT350 and SC-BTT750) come with Avatar after a mail in thing.

If anyone is looking at a 3D DLP TV, they carry the Mitsubishi ones and their prices have been pretty good before they started going out of business. I think their 60 inch DLP has been $550 forever.

It's kinda sad Ultimate Electronics is going down, but it's to be expected. Their poor sales strategy and lack of an online presense really hurt them. They also tried to reposition themselves as a budget retailer, but that failed too. As a result,
the last time I've ever actually bought anything from Ultimate Electronics was when one of their stores in my area was closing. (I don't like having to hunt down a sales rep and then wait forever while they try to use their ancient POS system.)
 
If you have one of these around might be worth checking out. We all know how these sales go but who knows.

This is the store that took Circuit City's old building here and did even worse apparently. Sad because I got my xbox360 for $150 there before xmas.
 
[quote name='jaydepps']They did the same thing near me. Moved right into the same spot.[/QUOTE]

Same, and using same liquidation firm as CC. Maybe the next place to move in should just keep em in the speed dial.
 
Who would have thought a company charging OVER MSRP would go out of business? That place amazed me it lasted so long. The Ultimate Electronics near my place actually built it's own store across the street from the now deserted Circuit City. Good riddance to bad rubbish. Now bring back a real competitor for Best Buy and Fry's please!
 
Where did they come from? I had never heard of them and all of a sudden they bought a bunch of locations when Circuit city collapsed.
 
Here the UE has been around for several years, way before CC went out. But with CC and UE out of business, there is no direct competition to BB whatsoever. I would love to have a Fry's around here.

On the game topic and not the liquidation or business practices, the local Ultimate Electronics only carries one game - Madden 11. They had about 15-20 copies on each console last weekend, 20% off. They're going to need minimum 60% off for me to even consider, but by then I'm sure they'll be gone.
 
Tucson, AZ here. A little sad to see it go, as I've definitely nabbed some great deals there in the past. Friendly people too. With the store closing and resulting 10% off video game items, I was able to score a SFIV TE fight stick (PS3) for about $90 after markdown and clearance.

Also, might want to throw a deal in the OP otherwise this will be moved. Like I said, video games and accessories are 10% off, while other items throughout the store receive up to 30% off discounts.
 
Thanks for the heads up, I'll check my local one tomorrow. Like others, it replaced cc in the exact same building. By the way, I liked the store. Friendly, gave u a free bottled water and didn't bother/pressure u into a purchase. This was in south tx so heres to hoping some good deals.
 
Wow, there's a store that's almost built out and been "Coming Soon" for a while really near my office. I guess not, huh?
 
This is a non0deal at this point. The only thing worth checking out would be new releases if there were no other discounts anywhere else.

Wait until the price cuts really start in earnest... at CC there was a 2-3 day window (1 day for really good deals on hot items) where they went from like 25-50 off everything to 40-70% off everything. That's when i bought a few things, but most good stuff is gone by then.

(50% of a Blu Ray was $15 at a time when 20 was customary.... but when it hit 60% off, i couldn't resist Flags of out Fathers and Letter from Iwo Jima for $26 combined...)

I'll post for the albany, NY store as cuts happen that i'm aware of.
 
I will miss it. They usually had great DVD/blu ray prices.

Tucson here and I called them up a few days ago and the guy I talked to said to anticipate a higher deal percent soon. My money is on today and I am going to try and swing by after work to check. I would think they will drop nationwide about the same time. I have my eye on a heavily discounted psp go.
 
[quote name='biledriver']If you have one of these around might be worth checking out. We all know how these sales go but who knows.

This is the store that took Circuit City's old building here and did even worse apparently. Sad because I got my xbox360 for $150 there before xmas.[/QUOTE] Is that a fellow 518 CaG??
 
I didn't even realize we had this store in my area until this past weekend when I saw the store and the closing signs. I do not bother with liquidation sales though since most of the time they are a scam. I also don't like participating in the rabid crowds when there really aren't any true deals to be had. I can get any electronics I need online for cheaper prices.
 
I walked into one when visiting a friend in the St. Charles, Missouri area.

Place was overpriced on most everything we looked at. We were basically just browsing around to kill some time.

The employees were pretty friendly though.
 
They had stuff no other chains carried around here, like exotic speakers and Mits DLPs (even LaserVue). Sorry to see them go--with CC gone, they should have had a niche to make if not for the economy (my guess anyway).
 
15%
Cameras

20%
DVD
Blu Ray
Console Video Games
Headphones

25%
Camcorders

30%
PC Games
Video Game Accessories

40%
Copy Paper

50%
Sharper Image crap (wine bottle openers and the like)
 
eneloop batteries .... 40%

absolutely the BEST and what I bought was at least 25% less than the lowest Amazon price before shipping
 
[quote name='Rig']I walked into one when visiting a friend in the St. Charles, Missouri area.

Place was overpriced on most everything we looked at. We were basically just browsing around to kill some time.

The employees were pretty friendly though.[/QUOTE]Holy crap, it's a Rig invasion. :shock:

That store isn't going to be any different than the other ones, so you saw them all in one sitting.

[quote name='donut']eneloop batteries .... 40%

absolutely the BEST and what I bought was at least 25% less than the lowest Amazon price before shipping[/QUOTE]That alone might be worth a run over there. Thanks for the info.
 
[quote name='1969iggy']I'll post for the albany, NY store as cuts happen that i'm aware of.[/QUOTE]

That would be appreciated. I'm in Troy, and only set foot in the place twice -- I'll be happy to pop in again if they start slashing prices.
 
[quote name='PR Mega X']That would be appreciated. I'm in Troy, and only set foot in the place twice -- I'll be happy to pop in again if they start slashing prices.[/QUOTE]

Seconded. Well, I've only been inside the place once (I spent the time scoffing at their terrible prices), but the rest of that applies to me too.
 
I stopped into the UE in Albuquerque, NM, today. PS3 games are 30% off (original ticketed prices), and both Wii and 360 games are 20% off.

I did find a copy of :ps3: Buzz World with the four controllers marked at $39.99, so after the discount $28. I was pleased.

Blu-rays are 25%, or 30% if you buy five or more.
 
I actually worked for Ultimate Electronics back in 2003 here in Minnesota. All commission-based pay, 55-60+ hours every week. It was tough . . . that being said, back when I worked there, we were VERY well trained (three weeks of sales and technology training prior to starting on the floor) and knowledgable about all the products we sold, including the high end stuff: Krell, Def-tech.

I made a lot of money during my time there and know some guys who will be losing their jobs now . . .
But, yes, they were definitely going for the lowest common denominator now. I'll probably stop in and say bye.
 
The only thing that looked appealing were 19" computer monitors for $100 after discount. That's after I realized that they're $100 brand new on Amazon. Thankfully I didn't buy one.
 
[quote name='shrike4242']Holy crap, it's a Rig invasion. :shock:

That store isn't going to be any different than the other ones, so you saw them all in one sitting.
[/QUOTE]

I actually thought about ya, shrike, while I was down there. Didn't exactly know what area you were from specifically...but I was sure you were a St. Louis CAG (or, close to it).
 
[quote name='1969iggy']I'll post for the albany, NY store as cuts happen that i'm aware of.[/QUOTE]

Any updates on the Albany store? Last time I went a couple weeks ago movies were 20% off and games were 15% off. That's not enough for me to drive there from Clifton Park. Stupid gas prices.
 
[quote name='bdude70']Any updates on the Albany store? Last time I went a couple weeks ago movies were 20% off and games were 15% off. That's not enough for me to drive there from Clifton Park. Stupid gas prices.[/QUOTE] Thats MY store! hehe
 
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