back to article Dixons Carphone to shut down 134 shops

Dixons Carphone Warehouse is shutting 134 shops, a move it insists will have "no impact on colleague numbers". The retail borg is consolidating its stores following the merger between Dixons Retail, owner of Currys and PC World, and Carphone Warehouse in May 2014. The new stores will house its remaining outlets under one roof …

  1. Bunker_Monkey

    So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

    So will these stores get renamed?

    "CarphoneWarehouseCurrysPCWorld"

    I think Dixons group need to sort this out once and for all. I avoid at all costs already, its lazy and offputting.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

      "CarphoneWarehouseCurrysPCWorld"

      It's going to be re-branded to:

      "Mugs Welcome"

      1. KeithR

        Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

        "Mugs Welcome"

        Only applies to customers who know LESS than the drones that work there.

        I'm not one. Are you?

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

      "CarphoneWarehouseCurrysPCWorld"

      quick combination gives me... "DixonsCarphoneWarehouseCurrysPCWorldMugsWelcomeU", which works out as... DCWCPCWMWU

      but then, the "warehouse" bit is so PC wrong, so... 1990s! Let's re-invent this as... "Logistics Hub" or something.

      Now, give me my due 1M creativity bonus and severance package, quick!

      1. TRT Silver badge

        Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

        PCCurryWarehouse

        1. Captain Scarlet Silver badge

          Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

          :O I can get a Bhuna whilst looking at which Dish Washer works best!

      2. Michael Strorm Silver badge

        Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

        @Anonymous Coward; Says a lot about how names become so familiar you don't think about them when you choose the "Warehouse" bit as being "so 1990s", but miss the fact it's got the even more anachronistic "carphone" in its name! :-)

        (You might be interested to note that it's apparently known as "Phone House" outside the UK and Ireland).

        FWIW, Carphone Warehouse was apparently founded in 1989, so wasn't the phrase "car phone" already a bit anachronistic by then? Bearing in mind that that the 1G analogue networks that replaced the aforementioned car phones with this (#) had already launched in the mid-80s (and, I'd assume, were already rendering the old-style car phones obsolete).

        (#) The phone, that is, not Sigue Sigue Sputnik or Janet Steet Porter.

    3. tmTM

      Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

      DickPhoneCurryHouse ??

    4. TheOtherHobbes

      Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

      How about just Curry House - because that's what most of the smaller stores will be turning into?

    5. illiad

      Re: So. How long is the shop banner going to be?

      Morrisons did one worse... many shops bought out by Nisa, who then renamed them 'mylocal' - one of the most stupid names to search for, even google confused...

      did a search for morrisons, found ancient website, no clue where the 'taken over' shops had gone...

  2. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

    "Our experience has taught us that the net effect on ... colleague levels is likely to be neutral or better,"

    Define "better".

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Define "better".

      better as in: they'd better resign when we ask them nicely to travel 30 miles further to their new re-located store.

    2. John Brown (no body) Silver badge
      Childcatcher

      I'm betting that staff turnover is enough to get rid of the required numbers of "colleagues" without having to bother with expensive and time consuming redundancy consultation periods and the associated costs. They won't be hiring anyone new this coming year. Natural wastage is probably cheaper.

      Icon, 'cos that's what they seem to employ.

  3. Tony S

    Based upon previous encounters with these people, it seems likely that they will keep the same staff who will now be ignorant of products in 3 completely separate markets.

    1. 's water music

      SMART objectives

      the same staff who will now be ignorant of products in 3 completely separate markets

      So at least they are developing their human captital. Put a date on it and the manager responsible could be in for a performance related bonus.

      Trebles all round

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      ignorance in 3 separate markets is nothing, really. I'm ignorant in thousands, plus in those that don't exist any more / yet!

    3. paulf
      Joke

      @Tony S

      "Based upon previous encounters with these people, it seems likely that they will keep the same staff who will now be ignorant of products in 3 completely separate markets."

      I counter they're not completely ignorant. They're very adept at getting all the information they need to answer questions from customers from the handy ticket shaped collection of notes on the shelf in front of each product.

  4. AMBxx Silver badge
    Joke

    Somebody say something nice about them

    Somebody must shop there and I've not downvoted all morning :D

    1. seven of five

      Re: Somebody say something nice about them

      Let me try:

      The are above average in their market.

      hmm, thats too generic.

      They do everything they can. (Noooo, just sarcastic)

      How about: They have put up a valliant effort.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Somebody say something nice about them

        I do better:

        they'd been so consistantly poor, that they made me discover internet shopping back in 20th century! And they continue in this effort as we speak.

        Kind of a National Titanic, resting in shallow waters, that nobody dares to scrap, and every couple of years they collect a bucketful of 1p to give it a lick of a fresh, new paint.

      2. KeithR

        Re: Somebody say something nice about them

        How about "if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys"?

        It's not the MONKEYS' fault.

    2. Gavin Chester

      Re: Somebody say something nice about them

      They are like Maplins, If you really need something there and then they probably have it in stock, and if you ring and reserve / click and collect you get a reasonable price, otherwise they are expensive.

      They are OK for white and handheld goods, especially if you want to see it in person or feel the weight of something, but of the three PCWorld/Currys stores near home and work they seem to have such a haphazard layout, with shelves that show something out of stock, and even if the computer says its in stock the woefully inaccurate stock locating abilities sometimes its easier not to bother.

      A few times I've ordered something only to be stuck in store 10 to 20 minutes as they can't find the item in the myriad of cupboards they may have hid the stock in, or even worse they haven't reserved it and you have to hope no-one else has bought it before you get there.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Somebody say something nice about them

        re. "stuck in store 10 to 20 minutes as they can't find the item"

        I would paraphrase:

        "...stuck in store 10 to 20 minutes as I can't find available staff" perhaps?

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Somebody say something nice about them

        "They are OK for white and handheld goods, especially if you want to see it in person or feel the weight of something"

        But too often they only seem to sell the base model. I just didn't buy a tablet from them because they were selling the Third World model with USB-B and 16G instead of the developed world version with USB-C, 64G/4G. I had to go to Amazon. I realise they can't stock everything, but it would be interesting to know their stocking policy.

      3. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

        Re: Somebody say something nice about them

        "They are like Maplins, If you really need something there and then they probably have it in stock, and if you ring and reserve / click and collect you get a reasonable price, otherwise they are expensive."

        A couple of years ago our bread machine died. A quick Google around found that the best price for the model we chose was....PCWorld. They were merged with Currys by then but it still seemed weird. So we reserved online and went off to buy it. The guy at the collection point desk looked a bit blank when we told him why we were there. So he had a look in the pile of reserved items, came back with the correct box, still looking a bit bemused and said "I didn't know we sold these".

        It's still going strong with an almost daily usage :-)

  5. werdsmith Silver badge

    We have four in our small town, a huge Currys, a biggish PC World, and two CPWs, one High Street and one out of town retails park one.

    The Currys carries much of the PC World lines, and has a mobile section.

    So yes, it does make sense.

    The art of shopping at Currys: Know what you want before you go in and make sure the deal works pricewise. Then go in, avoid eye contact with any staff and buy your item.

    Get out quick.

  6. Steve Davies 3 Silver badge

    oh well

    Perhaps the upside is that there may well be one less 'Blot on the High Street' in a good many parts of the country.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: oh well

      one less 'Blot on the High Street' in a good many parts of the country

      Which only leaves Greggs, Birthdays, Clinton Cards, Sports Direct, Cash Converters, O2, EE, Vodafone, KFC, Burger King, Game, Ernest Jones, JD Wetherspoon............

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: oh well

        and once they're all gone from our luvely high street?

        oh, what have the retail chains ever done for us...

        1. illiad

          Re: oh well

          when all dixcarwhteva has gone, Richersounds, argos, and lots of smaller shops will continue...

          But mostly Amazon, ebay, ebuyer, tons of online shops ...

      2. Lusty

        Re: oh well

        And the three coffee shops between each of them...

    2. Chika

      Re: oh well

      Blott On The High Street?

      So where is Lady Maud?

  7. derfer
    Unhappy

    Just like Tandy

    Many many years ago I worked for Tandy when Carphone Whorehouse bought them. After two years of being told no stores would be shut, I found out my site was closing.

    It was 'ok' though as they offered me a job at the nearby Carphone with the same salary. Problem was the salary wasn't far off minimum wage with a 100 to 150% bonus depending on performance at Tandy, obviously no bonus available at Carphone though.

    This way they didn't make any numbers redundant, but unsurprisingly quite a lot of us left.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Just like Tandy

      these days they're less subtle, they just put up your targets by 500% and wish you good luck.

  8. Prst. V.Jeltz Silver badge

    "no impact on colleague numbers" . You know when the language is as shrouded in management speak ( aka bullshit) that they're hiding something. It miught as well be coming out of a poiliticians mouth.

    I'm betting before long some of those colleagues will be "Empowered with choice in the job market"

    1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

      Yeah, it was an HR pronouncement and none of THEIR colleagues will be leaving. More likely HR will be expanding.

  9. Dick Emery

    They can always rebrand to...

    ...PhonesNot4U. Quite.

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Inevitable

    There's a trading estate at Staples Corner, North London. It has a giant PCWorld, with a Carphone Warehouse inside. A big Dixons/Curry's with Carphone Warehouse inside. And a Carphone Warehouse. (And they're all rubbish)

  11. Christopher Rogers

    They should reflect their purpose more and go for something along the lines of "TechGallery" where people look at variations of a product before buying from Amazon.

    1. KeithR

      Or Sorrywedon'thaveTHATmodelinstock.com

      1. GordonScally
        FAIL

        I had that at Christmas, no stock of a TV on sale and could not tell me if it would be back in stock (no stock anywhere in Scotland) before the prices went up . I bought the same item online and delivered a week later and saved over £50 not including the saving on the £80 HDMI cable they claimed was required for UHD upscaling. I bought one for £5 from same online supplier and works fine.

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon