Maplin closing down sale

[JumbleDuck]

Not all Maplins are closing, but those which are may offer some bargains, or at least reasonable prices. I've just been to the Edinburgh one, which has at least 10% off everything, 20 - 30% off useful things and 50% off some tat. Stocks still pretty good, but no Raspberry Pis left.

 

[pvb]

I got an email from them a couple of days ago and looked at their website. I was interested in some CCTV equipment. However, I thought I'd just do a quick Google check on the prices and found that Maplin prices were well over the top - even after the 10% off. Moral is: don't assume that closing-down sales are cheap!

 

[JumbleDuck]

I got an email from them a couple of days ago and looked at their website. I was interested in some CCTV equipment. However, I thought I'd just do a quick Google check on the prices and found that Maplin prices were well over the top - even after the 10% off. Moral is: don't assume that closing-down sales are cheap!

I agree - that's why I wrote "... some bargains, or at least reasonable prices". Some of the stuff I looked at was, even at 30% off, still well above Amazon prices.

 

[UK-WOOZY]

thats why they are struggling imho they have always been overpriced and when i have asked staff in the past about an item they dont know anything.

 

[dune16]

Maplin and Toys R Us didn't move with the times, both totally out of date. No surprise they both failed.

 

[GrahamM376]

Moral is: don't assume that closing-down sales are cheap!

Don't assume that ANY sale is cheap, some of our suppliers printed special boosted RRP price lists for so-called sales.

 

[seaangler23]

Better grab some more of these, handy for life jackets and haven't found them anywhere else,
https://www.maplin.co.uk/p/mini-led-torch-a98ta

 

[alant]

Better grab some more of these, handy for life jackets and haven't found them anywhere else,
https://www.maplin.co.uk/p/mini-led-torch-a98ta

"Up to 50%" sale, but didn't see any in local store.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Don't assume that ANY sale is cheap ...

From the list of Ken Dodd's greatest jokes on the BBC news website (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-43370741)

"Did any of us in our wildest dreams ever think we'd live long enough to see the end of the DFS sale?"

 

[elton]

Maplin and Toys R Us didn't move with the times, both totally out of date. No surprise they both failed.

In what way could Maplin have better moved with the times?

 

[Jabs]

How long have you got??

Expensive products of generally mediocre quality.
Poor back up.
Limited stock.
Staff with limited knowledge.
Persistent unwanted emails
Strange locations, High Street to way out of town to depressed areas.


Look at RS, order by eight pm for next day!
Quality products
Excellent stock
Knowledgable staff
Good paper trail, CE, H&S, etc.

I could go on!

Tony.

 

[JumbleDuck]

How long have you got??

I think Maplin correctly saw that they would be eaten alive by online suppliers, and did try to change with the times. It didn't work because they went for an area - cheap techno tat - which is also well served online. It's hard to see how they good have done better, though. There probably isn't enough of a market in high-end, high-margin techno toys to support all their shops, and certainly not in the semi industrial location of many of them. I think they were just doomed.

It's interesting that RS has moved into direct selling to consumers ... it's not that long ago that they were trade-only, minimum orders and rs-www.com. I think they probably saw the CPC/Farnell threat and responded to it. The only people who seem to make a go of Maplin's mixture of components and toys are Rapid, and I don't think they have ever had shops, have they?

 

[elton]

How long have you got??

Expensive products of generally mediocre quality.
Poor back up.
Limited stock.
Staff with limited knowledge.
Persistent unwanted emails
Strange locations, High Street to way out of town to depressed areas.

I disagree with most of that. My main criticism would be their focus on "bling", and the latest "tech bling". I wouldn't expect shop assistants to have in-depth technical knowledge, because if they did, they wouldn't be working in a shop. And I dislike their frequent assumption that they are the technical experts. That said, they must get fed up with customers who make out as if they are the expert, when all they have is a bit of hobbyist knowledge.

 

[JumbleDuck]

I disagree with most of that. My main criticism would be their focus on "bling", and the latest "tech bling". I wouldn't expect shop assistants to have in-depth technical knowledge, because if they did, they wouldn't be working in a shop. And I dislike their frequent assumption that they are the technical experts. That said, they must get fed up with customers who make out as if they are the expert, when all they have is a bit of hobbyist knowledge.

When they were a components place their staff did generally have very good technical knowledge - I believe there was a pleasantly geeky culture of people who worked at Maplins to support their "inventing things" habit. Even now they generally have one or two people who really know their stuff, but their isn't as much to know about a fold-up suitcase size, electrically propelled disco ball and so the numbers of the knowledgeable have been falling.

 

[Angele]

Better grab some more of these, handy for life jackets and haven't found them anywhere else,
https://www.maplin.co.uk/p/mini-led-torch-a98ta

Really?

Lifejacket lights are meant to be multi-directional (because you don't know the bearing to your potential rescuer) and properly waterproof (I don't think IP7 is good enough). I'm not going to trust my life to those.

Fine for use as a boat torch. But, as a lifesaving device, you are welcome to them.

Edit: But better than nothing, I guess.

 

[Carmel2]

They will solder on.

 

[Angele]

They will solder on.

 

[JumbleDuck]

They will solder on.

They are in a state of flux now, though. They need to stop ersin about.

 

[colind3782]

They will solder on.

Could be terminal.

 

[Railbob]

Could be terminal.

When all these puns start I switch off