Ok. This shutdown surprised me. Not from a common sense perspective but more… 'wow! These closures are really starting to gather steam. They are coming thick and fast. Any ideas who is prime to fall over next?
Headphone Giant Bose Has Announced It Will Close Every Australian Store – along with Outlets across The Globe
seamonkey on 16/01/2020 - 16:46
Last edited 16/01/2020 - 17:07 by 1 other user
Last edited 16/01/2020 - 17:07 by 1 other user
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DJs first, what's left of it
DJs has a bit of a niche (higher end) to play off. With better management, they can carve something out for themselves.
Can't say the same for Myer.
Why do you say that, both had net operating profits in $30mil mark (djs 37 and Myer 32) , but DJ's took a hit of $500m against Goodwill and others
@RockyRaccoon: Just personal opinion from general observation.
It has less to do with DJs and more to do with the stratosphere they can market to.
Weren't they moving into servos or something?
I think Myer will go before HN. It's already creeping out the backdoor … individuals sites closing down, store footprints being reduced, but still no improvement in profitability.
My suspicion is that the shopping centre operators are effectively keeping Myer afloat. Because they have such a large and typically bespoke footprint, it can be difficult for shopping centres to repurpose the sites in the short run.
As we all know, the shopping centres have always given these guys a good deal as the "anchor tenants", but it's got to start being pretty marginal for all concerned.
My bet is that in many instances, the Myer outlet is on "landlord life support", but once the landlord works out what they can do with the site (i.e. finds other large footprint tenants to move in), they'll basically send them to the wall.
Yep this 100%. Small shops get snapped up quicker than you can order a Big Mac in places like Chadstone but they would need a proper long-game to fill the sq-metres of Myer & DJ now that H&M and the like are established.
Please don't tease me, HN is the only place I won't feel sorry for.
Funny they're now a headphone giant. They used to be the place for expensive, high-end home theatre stuff.
They were never high end. Always have been mid-range plus.
Buy Other Sound Equipment.
Aww. They're not the best value proposition but they aren't the worst value and they certainly produce quality goods.
@[Deactivated]: I've heard good reviews of their noise-cancelling headphones, but then again I've heard good reviews of Beats.
Bose hi fi gear was pretty poor sound quality (IMO) for the price, but I gotta give credit they had good industrial design. Cheaper than B&O or crazy exotic brands I guess.
@abb: I think the appeal is in how well their ANC works, but the sound quality isn't as good as other brands. Other brands may not be able to match the ANC (although I think Sony has caught up lately?).
@Ghost47: Sony has surpassed Bose's ANC. Sound quality is debatable but I have never been a fan of Bose's sound signature anyway.
@abb: I'm not aware that they made hifi gear. I've always viewed them as a surround sound/home theatre player.
Recently they have gone into wearables and from observation only, they seem to be doing well.
Maybe they should go back to speakers only. I remember listing after the 901s
I remember listing after the 901s
What was on your list after the 901s?
BOSE - Great hype, overpriced, inaccurate sound reproduction.
The thing about most of the closures I've seen recently is that they are Aussie brands that have struggled due to sales, so they have had to shut down completely or close some stores.
BOSE are spinning these closures as the result of online shopping becoming more ubiquitous, not due to slowing sales.
I don't think it's fair to compare this to the EB, Harris Scarf, Shoes of Prey. Jeans West etc. closures.
The same logic would apply - low sales numbers from those retail stores compared to their cost in terms of rent, labour, etc.
Just Bose chose to close the shops before they were forced to by losses and (involuntary) administration.
I think what Ghost47 meant was that it wasn't a decision between close or go bust. It may have been a decision of making money or making more net money.
Oh right yeah, I think that's really a difference of degree still - the concept is still the same: not making enough money from retail to justify keeping them open.
@HighAndDry: I just think they're adapting for survival.
Sure, during their peak, they could afford to splurge on marketing but the market has changed.
From a business point of view, I'm actually more confident in Bose's management for making a move than to carry on proudly as the ship sinks.
Just like many other companies, especially those that have adapted, you'd notice Bose's offerings have evolved substantially. Perhaps a flagship store no longer makes sense regardless of the market climate.
Yep. It'd be a similar comparison to EB games but not to Harris Scarf, Jeans West or Shoes of Prey now that I think about it. The latter stores couldn't survive and the former had to lean up by paring back stores.
BOSE may be leaning up but they aren't closing completely, so you can't compare it to the majority Australian chains that have had to shut down completely recently. They are also a global brand, the concern with the closures here is the effect the economy is having on those stores. Whether or not the BOSE closures are due to a slowing global economy or something is yet to be seen.
How can you apply the same logic to a store like Harris Scarf (probably not EB as I mentioned) when Harris Scarf closed down completely and BOSE are still in business?
That's my point. There have been several Aussie brands recently that have closed down completely, BOSE aren't doing that, they're just changing their operating model.
If Harris Scarf still existed and the stores were to close up and the chain going to an online-only model, then you can compare the two side by side. But that's not the case, one business shut down completely and the other is still operating.
Edit: Whether BOSE's sales are slowing or not is irrelevant. They may be, and that may be why they are going online-only, but they aren't shutting down completely due to not being profitable unlike Aussie chains have in recent times which has been a cause for concern in the Australian economy. The OP is concerned that something is going on in the economy and likening the Aussie closures to this but I don't see it being that comparable. BOSE haven't "fallen over" either.
Not only that, but Bose is closing stores where they sell their own product (that they are still making) alongside other retailers that also sell THEIR product.
Looking at EB Games in particular, they have little to no product - they're a storefront for someone else's products. Harris Scarf I would say is the same, and Shoes of Prey and Jeans West to a lesser extent (I believe Jeans West only sells self-branded product?).
Bose stores are a major factor in experience and decision making process. Other retailers have limited range or products.
Feel the sales will now take a hit.
It will definitely take a hit. Lower exposure always means lower revenue.
The big question is the bottom line.
I'm shocked too. I'd personally prefer to go into their stores to check out their merch first if I were to ever buy a pair of BOSE headphones.
Do the stores charge the RRP? Could one get their headsets cheaper at JB or something? It's a bit overkill to close every store IMO, and if the stores aren't profiting it's because people get a better deal online or elsewhere.
Don't know if it's just me but I would go into JB or Myer first if I wanted to try the headphones. Never stepped foot inside a Bose store before.
Makes sense, outlets work better for boutique/high end products with niche appeal, but Bose have pretty much crossed over into a more mainstream product from where they were before. Less need to have special demo environments to raise brand awareness when enough people are snapping them up at other stores and online anyway, often at heavy 3rd party discounts.
I have a different opinion on this. They have been falling behind in the software/firmware market when compared to their competitors. Sonos is able to provide a wider variety of streaming service options with better wifi connectivity which influences the buyer to spend in non-bose ecosystem.
In addition to this, the online prices for their products are relatively cheaper than their own store website, for instance Bose AM10 is sold for $1500 from bose directly, but amazon.com.au is selling it for $1240 ish. a wise decision from a business perspective, but is gaining a lot of negative traction.Hoping to see a sale on their products now.
why bother? I buy my BOSE off JB or online.
Call me old school but when I think Bose, I still see little cube speakers systems.
Those things cost too much to buy without auditioning them a few times beforehand.
I own 5 Bose speakers. I’m not surprised, I’ve never been into a Bose shop. I don’t see the need for them. Clearly neither did they. I don’t think Bose is in trouble at all. They just saw a good way to cut costs.
Agreed
Maybe with the reduced overheads they can lower the prices of their systems, which are terribly over-priced
Crikey, another one.
Here's an interesting site if anyone is interested in where aussie retail is heading IMO.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/completely-surreal-pictures-…
Or a search on 'americas ghost malls' brings up some cool stuff too.
So… Detroit?
:) Nah I think it's all over…and all over soon. :)
I only ever visited Bose store to try the headphones before ordering online.
Speakers I could try at JB Hifi.
I've never seen a customer in the Bose store here. I would never buy Bose myself either, not sure how they got so big other than the boom where they were the upgrade option for a lot of car manufacturers in the mid-00's.
As for the whole 'ghost malls' thing. Well, we really don't have many here in Australia in the first place so I can't see that being much of an issue.
Bose had stores in Australia? I'd never seen one.
Just confirms to me never to consider the benefits of warranty when making a purchase.
I bought suitcases that had 20 year warranty and thought excellent, then Victoria station went under.
Sad world this is becoming 😞
My guess? Myer and HN.