Gateway To Close All Retail Stores 324
John Lazzaro writes "Looks like Gateway is throwing in the towel and closing all of its remaining retail stores, according to a Reuters/Yahoo! report." The story notes: "Gateway's stores, which will be closed on April 9, have long been criticized by analysts and investors as an expensive drag on cash flow because of lease costs and the difficulty of managing inventories", and goes on to suggest: "...with [the acquisition of] eMachines, Gateway doesn't necessarily need the added distribution channel the stores gave the company. In addition to selling Gateway's wares over the phone and via the Internet, eMachines PCs are sold at major retailers such as Best Buy."
Who needs... (Score:4, Funny)
Tee hee!
What's wrong with AOL? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Gateway Sucks (Score:5, Interesting)
My favorite is the guy who called up with a Gateway computer that had 768 MB Ram, a Radeon 9600, and RAID 0 in it. Which is all fine, except the power supply was 250 Watts!!! Needless to say this guy had tons of problems with his computer from day 1.
Gateway is Dying! (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Gateway is Dying! (Score:2)
Unfortantely, your subject line isn't. Gateway is shuttering the store chain because they don't need it anymore... eMachines has more than enough retail distribution.
Re:Gateway is Dying! (Score:2, Interesting)
Couldn't have helped their sales when they briefly partnered with OfficeMax stores, one of which is across the street from the Gateway Country store.
LostCluster is correct, though, eMachines has a much larger retail distribution chain se
Not Funny Mods (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Not Funny Mods (Score:5, Interesting)
And GDP is delicious, and nutritious. I'm eating fried GDP with Jobless Recovery hot sauce, and this weekend it's GDP with Consumer Confidence Index noodles, followed by GDP pie. And it's Atkins friendly (no carbos)!
Just kidding. I'm not having my GDP and eating it too, although I hear from 1% of the population that it is very good.
Re:Not Funny Mods (Score:3, Funny)
hell, i've heard that in some parts of western europe they'll still guarantee you a paycheck, regardless of whether or not you actually have a job. not that western europe is comparable to the USSR, but they don't seem to care if people ever stop being on welfare.
there are actually a lot of people here who think that the US government really
The reason why (Score:5, Funny)
Re:The reason why (Score:3, Funny)
Is there a 4th world "country" that they can source tech. support to?
Re:The reason why (Score:2)
Re:The reason why (Score:2)
Re:The reason why (Score:2)
Is there a 4th world "country" that they can source tech. support to? That was totally uncalled for. And stop living in the past. There is no way India can be called Third World, and a large number of Indian companies call US for tech support. That makes the US a fourth world country then?? --Shamelessly proud Indian
Teh funny (Score:3, Funny)
Oh.
Ouch. (Score:5, Interesting)
The closing isn't surprising at all. To sell at a store like this, you need to have a more attractive product. Gateway had the Profile, which was not a good product. It saved space, but it performed poorly, and was not designed to be easily maintained. It was similar to the iPaq in these respects, and neither succeeded. They failed to attract certain market segments that made the iMac popular, namely education.
Besides that, all they had were a bunch of run-of-the mill computers. Their company really did not have much vision. And when they made an interesting move (acquiring Amiga or saying that DRM is bad), they didn't follow through with it.
The future of Gateway looks pretty bleak. I think in this move they are probably looking to be acquired. They have never really got it. Trying to show vision, and then turning their back on that vision. Poor service, trying to undersell, not finding a customer base.
Re:Ouch. (Score:2)
In some ways this is a reverse merger. The eMachines CEO and founder is replacing Gateway founder Ted Waitt. The headquarters are moving from suburban San Diego to Orange County, CA near eMachine's current Irvine, CA headquarters. It looks like the visonaries and operational efficiencies of eMachines are pushing to the top to save the company.
Re:Ouch. (Score:2)
Mergers have a very destructive effect upon the corporate culture. They cause immediate infighting and backstabbing on the management level. If you ever though management was worthless, you will find out their true value when they all completely stop doing their jobs and start with full time politics.
gateway might be a stock to watch on the downside.
Re:Ouch. (Score:2)
Moo (Score:3, Funny)
Now I have to wonder (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Now I have to wonder (Score:5, Funny)
Not likely (Score:2)
"If their decision to fi
Don't worry retailers, we're getting out... (Score:5, Insightful)
Shutting down the stores is more or less a nod to the retail chains that they can have eMachines all to themselves, and there's no danger of having to compete with eMachines coming out of a Gateway Country store. Even if those eMachines PCs had a "Gateway" sticker on them, it'd still be just as bad to the retailers... they don't like suppliers who are trying to undercut them by operating their own retail stores.
This is one of the forces that limits Apple's distribution. Apple choses to sell mostly directly and therefore they aren't making much of a push to get themselves into major retail chains... Since Wal-Mart can't undercut Apple's prices, Wal-Mart's not particularly interested in having Apple.
So, there's a nice firm wall going up at Gateway. Made-to-order PCs will be ordered by phone or Internet and be stamped Gateway, mass-made machines will be in retail stores and called eMachines. Everybody should be happy...
Apple and major retail chains (Score:5, Insightful)
I think you're confusing cause and effect here. Apple chose to go direct precisely because their forays into big box retail had been so unsuccessful. BestBuy, Circuit City, Computer City, Office Max, Sears - Apple has tried them all. In every case Apple's products were marginalized by big-box salespeople who didn't know the first thing about Apple technology and had no interest in learning about it.
Apple's retail presence is far greater now that they control presentation of their products. They've selected marquee locations and they showcase Apple products "in the wild" so customers can play with Macs, digital video cameras, add-on devices, and so on.
Wal-Mart was founded on deep price discounting. Volume of sales for already established commodity products is their bread and butter. Wal-Mart is, as you pointed out, not interested in getting into a business where they can't undercut the competition. Apple is likewise uninterested in making a deal with Wal-Mart, because they'd rapidly lose control over the value of the Apple brand.
Re:Apple and major retail chains (Score:2)
Don't forget that in the big box retail stores, Apple was often going up against lower priced PCs in the next aisle. If you don't know anything about computers, those Macs looked nice and may have gotten you in the store, but damn that PC across from it was an awful lot less and had rows of boxes of software sitting behind it.
Re:Apple and major retail chains (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm sure that not cutting the dealers in on the profit was a part of their motive too. Apple fucked their dealers our of the lucrative educational market, which contributed to Apple losing their lock on that market.
Apple's method of business doesn't work well in big retail. For big retail, the name of the game is volume discounts and lower prices than the co
Re:Don't worry retailers, we're getting out... (Score:2)
Re:Don't worry retailers, we're getting out... (Score:2)
Gateway has been selling their PCs through retail channels for some time, such as Costco, Sam's Club, OfficeMax, etc. This move has a lot more to do with worries of Best Buy selling a competitors product. Gateway is trying to positiion themselves in a way to get their Consumer Electronics products right alongs
"Custom" PC's (Score:3, Insightful)
They failed to underestimate the "I want it now" of customers. If they want to wait, they will order online for a few dollars less.
It would have worked if they had put a single, well-trained tech in every store to "customize" your box (the computer you pervs), and boom, you're out the door with a custom Gateway PC in 15 minutes. If you want a burn-in, pick it up tommorrow.
Or is a f
Re:Don't worry retailers, we're getting out... (Score:3, Interesting)
Last week my uncle bought a 2 ghz AMD, cd-r, dvd-rom, and 40gig harddrive and 17" monitor emachine for 350$ after rebates.
It was too damn good to pass up.
Confirmed: Not an April Fools Joke (Score:5, Informative)
Although Apple seems to be doing quite well in retail, Gateway was losing money hand-over fist. (Gee, think that could have anything to do with quality?)
My prediction: Either they merge with another company or they'll be out of business within two years.
Re:Confirmed: Not an April Fools Joke (Score:5, Insightful)
Nah, more to do with uniqueness. You've got to go through Apple to get a Macintosh that runs OSX... but anybody can make sell you a PC running Windows. Apple therefore can keep tighter control over their retail prices, while an undercut from a competitor can force a PC maker to lower prices.
It's worked for Dell (Score:2, Interesting)
but I don't think Gateway's build-to-order system is as well running as Dell's.
Re:It's worked for Dell (Score:2)
Dell Has stores too (Score:2, Informative)
No idea if they're profitable though.
http://www1.us.dell.com/content/topics/segtopic
Re:It's worked for Dell (Score:2)
Re:It's worked for Dell (Score:5, Interesting)
Dell has a number of mall kiosks, at least around here in Ohio. They have more a seasonal focus tho. If you want to order anything, you use the PC on display to go to the website. One or two people sit there and answer the typical first PC buyer questions.
You can't really compare Dell to Gateway. Dell has a very different image, expecially in the business market. Gateway made a big push into the small business market, but much isn't heard about that anymore. If you don't have that big cash cow of business desktops and mid-range servers, don't have a great rep in the high-margin digital media and gamer marked, and can't bundle lots of services and financing, there aren't a lot of places left to carve out a niche without having to carve it out of a competitor. I think Emachines will become the new brand image, in stores like Best Buy and CompUSA, going after the lower end market under HP and Sony.
You have to wonder what is going to happen to the Gateway plasma TVs. That was really the only reason to go to a Gateway store (they have no real brand image or must-have products like Apple, or the fans either). If they could get those in stores and use it as leverage in package with a gateway based DVR system, they may get some where.
Re:It's worked for Dell (Score:4, Funny)
There's a joke in here somewhere...
Dell is also higher quality (Score:2)
They have steadily improved this over the years to where they are now a viable business choice.
Gateway hasn't done this...
not suprising if you'd ever been in one (Score:5, Informative)
When I asked them about Linux, or a machine without an O/S, I was told "Microsoft won't let us do that." Double Duh.
In short, it was about the most useless showroom experience I've had in a long time. Gateway will lose nothing by shutting these turkeys (cows?) down.
Re:not suprising if you'd ever been in one (Score:3, Informative)
1. local repairs - take your pc needing a repair or an upgrade to your local Gateway Country; better than juggling DHL packages from Dell
2. try before you buy - when I was shopping for laptops, I checked out my local Gateway Country to try them out. In this case, I decided on a Dell, but the experience sure helped.
Re:not suprising if you'd ever been in one (Score:2)
I've had issues with Dells, IBMs, HPs, etc on business class machines. I call them up, next morning, early AM I receive the part, I am able to swap it out onsite and get the computer back up adn running within 24 hours.
Perhaps if Gateway didn't have their stores, they might
Re:not suprising if you'd ever been in one (Score:2)
Anyhow, there's some litigation that's brought up by some Apple resellers as to how Apple handles it's accounting regarding it's own Apple stores.
It would seem that Apple basically hands Apple software to their AppleStore for the mere cost of shipping so that the stores can boost it's revenu figures by racking all the profits under it's balance sheet.
Not like a big scanda
Re:not suprising if you'd ever been in one (Score:2)
Re:not suprising if you'd ever been in one (Score:2)
Since Gateway is not in the the software business, I took it to mean that they were a subsidiary of Microsoft. It took numerous calls to our "account executive" and threats of legal action to get it straight.
Its about time (Score:4, Insightful)
Not to be confused with... (Score:2)
Oh, you weren't.
Re:Not to be confused with... (Score:2)
Imagine getting your pink slip today. (Score:2)
Here is the press release [gateway.com]
This also proves that Slashdot is no longer a joke.
Oh....wait....
Re:Imagine getting your pink slip today. (Score:2, Offtopic)
Understandable, but.... (Score:5, Interesting)
I remember trying to help my dad buy his next computer, and it really helped for me to be able to take him to the store and for him to physically see the computer he was going to buy. While large computer outfits can do this too, it was better, conceptually, for him to go to a store that only had one brand of computer, and they weren't all in the back next to shelves of accessories and idiot salesmen (like at CompUSA or Fry's.)
Especially for the over 45 crowd, adoption of internet-based sales can be a little discomforting. While i haven't a problem with it, Gateway's target audience just might.
Re:Understandable, but.... (Score:3, Funny)
Hey there, sonny.
I was typing a clever response to this when Clippy popped-up and said: "The fingers you are typing with are too old. Please rap the keyboard with the handle of your cane and I'll try to provide you with helpful information."
Suddenly uncertain, frightened and nervous, I do so. What do I get? A bunch of weblinks for Depends, hearing aids, Viagra, and some kind of loud, annoying automotive acc
Re:I know enough (Score:2)
Gateway can be tax free again (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Gateway can be tax free again (Score:2)
However, this doesn't make their business offerings any more attractive, since every state that has a sales tax also has a use tax. The Fifth Amendment makes it awfully hard to extract use tax from an individual, but businesses enjoy no such protection...
Re:Gateway can be tax free again (Score:2)
Re:Gateway can be tax free again (Score:2)
Re:Gateway can be tax free again (Score:2)
Re:Gateway can be tax free again (Score:2)
Re:Gateway can be tax free again (Score:4, Interesting)
What's kind of interesting is that at one time, Gateway and Dell (back around when Dell was still called PCs Limited) were roughly equal competitors, selling virtually all their computers through ads in computer magazines and 800 numbers. Gateway futzed around, buying companies, opening retail stores, and being relatively late to the Internet. Meanwhile, Dell focused on squeezing every nickel out of the supply chain, minimizing inventory, and embracing the Internet early as a sales tool.
(Ironic note - Dell built their original e-commerce site using Apple's WebObjects)
As a result, Dell is now the biggest PC maker on the planet, and Gateway is, well, Gateway. They are the perennially beleaguered PC company that most people accuse Apple of being.
This is sad (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:This is sad (Score:5, Informative)
Problem was, this machine couldn't run Windows 3.1 in 386 Enhanced mode. I had had a similar problem with a computer that I owned, and knew that this had to do with a faulty keyboard controller or circuits associated with it. Address Line 20 on the keyboard controller was actually used to switch between Protected and Enhanced mode on the 386. I related this information to Gateway tech support, and recieved incredulous reactions, assurances that such a thing was impossible, and no help whatsoever.
Shortly after the warrenty ran out, Gateway admitted that there was a fault in the keyboard controller that was causing our problem. They refused to make good, even though I had given them the answer months before, and insisted on charging for the motherboard swap. My boss at the time was not particularly clueful about these things, and declined to press the matter.
I, being a student at the time had to console myself with informing the manager of Gateway Customer service that "as long as I live, Gateway will never see another fucking cent from any person or company who comes to me for advice on computers. Enjoy that $200 fee, because it's going to cost you tens of thousands of dollars in lost sales" (and has).
Some grudges are worth holding
Re:This is sad (Score:2)
where am i gonna check my email on the road? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:where am i gonna check my email on the road? (Score:2)
You'd think that if they know how to log it, they'd also know how to block it...
Re:where am i gonna check my email on the road? (Score:2)
Re:where am i gonna check my email on the road? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:where am i gonna check my email on the road? (Score:2)
They really want you to try their machines.
Pretty cool, eh?
D
Re:where am i gonna check my email on the road? (Score:3, Informative)
Try an Apple Store. Not nearly as many as Gateway has (had), but you can spend as long as you like on their computers, and use the internet pretty much without restriction. List [apple.com]. You don't even have to like Macs--the whole idea is that the experience will move someone "on the fence" to purchasing one for themselves, eventually.
Here's a link to the press release itself (Score:5, Informative)
So does this mean no more sales tax on web orders? (Score:2)
So is eMachines a separate-enough entity that Gateway no longer has a 'physical presence'?
Meanwhile, Dell has a kiosk at a local mall. I didn't get close enough to see if they were actually selling there. But I just checked at Dell, and now their site collects my state's tax.
Re:So does this mean no more sales tax on web orde (Score:3, Informative)
Re:So does this mean no more sales tax on web orde (Score:2)
Yes folks, it's the curse of Amiga! (Score:2)
no its true (Score:4, Informative)
Talked to some guy, and he said yea, theyre closing. Should have a big sale, but doesnt know when.
I'm gonna call back saturday and see..
hope i can score some cheap shit!
-Grump
Re:no its true (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah. Cheap shit.
Re:no its true (Score:2, Funny)
find some cheap shit at a cheap price.
-Grump
forget the PC's... (Score:2)
*de-computers, runs to store....*
Re:forget the PC's... (Score:2)
Re:forget the PC's... (Score:3, Informative)
good move by gateway (Score:2, Insightful)
Ah, the memories (Score:4, Interesting)
Oh, no! Now where... (Score:2)
~Philly
Saw Gateway at Costco this morning (Score:4, Informative)
- "Oh, forget the cable, I was really looking for a laptop like that one, can I see? Oooh. Nice. Ah. Color? Neat. Hmmm. Say I could use something like that -- say how's the screen in bright light, I notice that it's rather dark in here."
What we had there was a failure to communicate.It's great -- how do you spell your mother's maiden name?
"Could we remove it from the shackle for a minute and take it near the window to get an idea?"
Sorry, we're not allowed to do that -- its against our security policy. Do you rent or own?
"No, no, I don't want to take it OUTSIDE, just over near the, er, tinted *sigh* window to get an idea how...
"Will you want a printer with your purchase?"
So, good bye Gateway Stores -- you sucked and we're better off without you.
How will Gateway sell consumer electronics now? (Score:2, Interesting)
After the Gateway stores close down, how will they peddle their consumer electronics? Unlike PCs, customers want to see and hear these products perform.
If this were Apple closing all it stores..... (Score:2)
While Gateway who has been losing money as fast as Donald Trump is losing hair gets a positive spin on their story.
How about a little bit of the truth in the article! It would be nice to read how Gateway is teetering on the brink and about how Dell has beat them to within an inch of their lives. Gateway would have a hard time giving its computers away!
Adjectives of Doom Scale. (Score:5, Funny)
They've been described as being Troubled for a while and I was wondering if there's a scale of adjectives that journalists use to describe how deep in shit a company is.
If I remember rightly Apple went straight to Beleagured status almost overnight, and stayed that way for around five years!
What about the computing grid? (Score:5, Interesting)
Display Models on the Cheap? Release the Vultures (Score:3, Insightful)
I saw this coming... (Score:4, Informative)
I worked for a software company in California, and I was asked to purchase a PC for an emergency programming job. Our usual supplier took over a week to get a PC, and I remembered seeing the Gateway store on my way to work.
Thinking the Gateway might be a cut above the HP Pavilion or something I would get at Best Buy I drove over there. There were about 3 people looking at computers -- one was getting a demo of something by a sales person -- a pretty empty store.
It took me 3 minutes to walk around and peruse the various models, and then 10 more to get a sales rep to talk to me.
I pointed at a PC and told him I wanted to get one and asked for a price. When he told me it would take a week to get the PC, I was floored.
"You don't have any computers to sell here???"
"No."
"What's in all these cow-boxes you have along the windows?"
"They're empty."
"So what do you sell here?"
"Well, you can order one here. The store is so that customers can come in and try the machines out and match their needs to the PC."
"But I can order one from home with a couple of mouse-clicks!"
He didn't have much of an answer for that. I drove on to Best Buy and got the Pavilion.
I remember thinking that GW was crazy to open all these stores just so people could look and touch (but not take!) the machines. Expensive real-estate too -- all the stores I saw were in very high-rent areas.
Maybe Inouye can keep Waitt's expensive schemes in check and keep the company afloat....
They got what they wanted out of E-Machines (Score:3, Insightful)
Distribution channels at retail without a lot of work. Large retail outlets like Costco. I suspect that Costco sells a lot of PCs. I don't know what E-Machines profitibility of late, but they started with a very lean infrastructure. Few people --the ceo/founder, a secretary and about 17 sales people-- and contract builds by KDS and ??? in Korea with drop shipping to the retail outlet directly.
Gateway could use some cash management skills and a method of being profitable. Retail is likely the only way in the near future they are going to get it since Dell, Tiger, IBM and HP aren't going way any time soon and seem much better run. The E-Machines model gives them that.
I'd say this is a hell of a lot better move than when NEC mergered with Packard Bell. That still makes me shudder.
Re:Yeah. (Score:3, Informative)
RTFpress release [gateway.com]. This story's legit.
Re:Yeah. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Gateway? (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Wait.... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Wait.... (Score:2)
Yeah, I went into one and was suprised how bleak it was (a couple demo computers and one rack of accessories). They didn't have anything significant in stock, so I went up the street and bought what I needed from a white-box supplier. I really couldn't see what would motivate someone to buy from a Gateway store, because Gateway is hardly a brand like Sharper Image or something that sets them apart from every other PC company on the planet.
Re:Why stores? (Score:2, Informative)
Micron tried to combine these markets by selling made to order machines at Best Buy but it didn't really catch on.
Maybe with this merger a there will be a Gateway retail brand too. It could be a more expensive alternative to the EMachine base system.
Re:Hmm... (Score:2)
Seriously, I'm all for talking 1337, but people who use then for than are the lowest of the low.
Everyone who does this shit should have to watch while their mom is locked in a room with 12 sex-starved convicts.
Re:google (Score:4, Funny)