Dick Smith Exposed

[kreed]

On Dec 25, 1:06 pm, TonyS <nos...@mymail.com> wrote:

On 25/12/2011 9:33 AM, kreed wrote:









On Dec 25, 7:01 am, David Eather<eat...@tpg.com.au>  wrote:
On 24/12/2011 1:59 PM, geoff wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"<phi...@tpg.com.au
wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally about.

Unless he has no pride.

geoff

What Dick used to do was sell you resistors that with a 98% profit
margin and tantalum's with an 86% margin*. Then he got on TV to complain
how IKEA was ripping of Australians

* my very first job was as a salesman at DSE Chermside.
--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

Strange how they always see their own worst faults in others isnt
it ?   Never been to Ikea, so dont know what their pricing is like.

Really? How much would your mark up be if you'd have to re-package a
penny article and sell it in retail quantities, keeping it on stock over
years? Keep in mind you have to make a profit.

Not saying that it is wrong, illegal or unjustified, just that if he
is going to do it, then he shouldn't
knock others who do it.

 

[David Eather]

On 25/12/2011 1:49 PM, Phil Allison wrote:

"kreed"
Some Trolling Idiot

What Dick used to do was sell you resistors that with a 98% profit
margin and tantalum's with an 86% margin*. Then he got on TV to complain
how IKEA was ripping of Australians

* my very first job was as a salesman at DSE Chermside.


** What era was this ?

I know someone what was there in the late 70s.

Late seventies (79?). Sid McKitrick, Mark Sutton, and a Brian who's last
name I can't remember, he was a good bloke - worse I can't remember the
name of a mate who came over from the Buranda store - Michael Hodges.

DSE generally lost money selling 0.5W resistors and tantalum caps through
their retail stores.

Wages paid to staff that had to order and handle such stock and deal with
counter sales exceeded the value the sales - plus there as a high theft
rate.

I have never heard that (lost money). Just running some numbers it would
indeed be true if the customer only bought a couple of resistors or
caps. Service was faster/cheaper back then as you did not have to record
part numbers, and if a customer asked for something by device name ( a
741) most of the staff could just turn around and pick it out of the
parts trays.

Except for one guy called Cyril M. He was retired. He was sort of a sad
guy. Every time, he'd come to the counter with a switch or something and
ask if you had one that was a specific colour or shape or size or
something. Of course the answer was "No", and then he'd take 10 minuets
telling you why he needed one that was different, but he would take this
one if you were sure that was all you had because ... (another 5
minutes. We used to dread him especially on busy days (it made no
difference to him), but when he wasn't in our store he was doing the
same at Delsound, St Lucia, and other Dick Smith stores.

I never heard of the theft rate being a problem although we never caught
a shoplifter despite what the sign said. Our stock takes came in within
1% of the expected value so Chermside at least did OK. We had a casual
who used to help himself to the till but when it was figured out who it
was he was let go.

" Never been to Ikea, so dont know what their pricing is like."

Dick's criticisms of Aldi, Ikea and others is all here:

http://whatacon.com.au/blog/ikea-what-going

He seems to have a good point.



.... Phil

--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

 

[David Eather]

On 25/12/2011 1:06 PM, TonyS wrote:

On 25/12/2011 9:33 AM, kreed wrote:
On Dec 25, 7:01 am, David Eather<eat...@tpg.com.au> wrote:
On 24/12/2011 1:59 PM, geoff wrote:









Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"<phi...@tpg.com.au
wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally about.

Unless he has no pride.

geoff

What Dick used to do was sell you resistors that with a 98% profit
margin and tantalum's with an 86% margin*. Then he got on TV to complain
how IKEA was ripping of Australians

* my very first job was as a salesman at DSE Chermside.
--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

Strange how they always see their own worst faults in others isnt
it ? Never been to Ikea, so dont know what their pricing is like.

Really? How much would your mark up be if you'd have to re-package a
penny article and sell it in retail quantities, keeping it on stock over
years? Keep in mind you have to make a profit.

He didn't have to make a profit on sales of each resistor, only on the
business overall. If DSE decided not to sell resistors because selling
them one or two at a time was not profitable, then he would have found
less people coming in for the profitable items.

But before you make those criticisms. Dick Smith used to pride itself on
being on of the countries *20* *most* *profitable* business so they were
raking it in hand-over-fist. The only things they didn't have big
margins on were brand name items like their TEAC amp, Weller and Scope
soldering irons.

--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

 

[TonyS]

On 26/12/2011 2:57 AM, David Eather wrote:

On 25/12/2011 1:06 PM, TonyS wrote:
On 25/12/2011 9:33 AM, kreed wrote:
On Dec 25, 7:01 am, David Eather<eat...@tpg.com.au> wrote:
On 24/12/2011 1:59 PM, geoff wrote:









Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"<phi...@tpg.com.au
wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally
about.

Unless he has no pride.

geoff

What Dick used to do was sell you resistors that with a 98% profit
margin and tantalum's with an 86% margin*. Then he got on TV to
complain
how IKEA was ripping of Australians

* my very first job was as a salesman at DSE Chermside.
--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

Strange how they always see their own worst faults in others isnt
it ? Never been to Ikea, so dont know what their pricing is like.

Really? How much would your mark up be if you'd have to re-package a
penny article and sell it in retail quantities, keeping it on stock over
years? Keep in mind you have to make a profit.



He didn't have to make a profit on sales of each resistor, only on the
business overall. If DSE decided not to sell resistors because selling
them one or two at a time was not profitable, then he would have found
less people coming in for the profitable items.

It's totally up to a business owner if he wants to make a loss in one
area to gain business in other. Or would you have preferred a minimum
order quantity of 1000? Maybe that's just not a good example for mark-ups.

But before you make those criticisms. Dick Smith used to pride itself on
being on of the countries *20* *most* *profitable* business so they were
raking it in hand-over-fist. The only things they didn't have big
margins on were brand name items like their TEAC amp, Weller and Scope
soldering irons.

Profitable can also mean that the business is run more efficiently than
others. Or that they pay less in wholesale. The retail price depends
very much on the demand and the competition. I can't judge DS cause I
don't know any details.

There are, however, a few strange things happening in Aussie retail.
Why ARE Ikea bits so much cheaper in other countries?
How come we pay so much more for cars than Americans, e.g.?
Why is much of the electronic goods here yesterday's technology?
All things that must have a reason I don't know. Maybe you do?

 

[Jeßus]

On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 16:59:16 +1300, "geoff" <geoff@nospampaf.co.nz>
wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison" <phil_a@tpg.com.au
wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally about.

Unless he has no pride.

Indeed. Well, AFAIK Dick did sell his name and image, so...
OTOH, if I were him, I'd be trying to divorce myself from the DSE
brand as much as possible at this point. Perhaps he ought to change
his name by deed poll!

 

[Phil Allison]

"TonyS"

Profitable can also mean that the business is run more efficiently than
others. Or that they pay less in wholesale.

** DSE only began to go well when a wholesale division was set up to *
import nearly everything* in the shops. It started with CB radios and then
components, gadgets, phones and computers.

It meant DSE was competing with virtually nobody and his retail margins were
very high.

There are, however, a few strange things happening in Aussie retail.
Why ARE Ikea bits so much cheaper in other countries?

** The markets there will not tolerate higher prices.

Manufacturers everywhere try to set the prices in each country they sell
into to suit the local market - in some places sales volumes are high and
the margins are small and in other places it's the opposite.

With famous brand products - the foreign manufacturer sets the price and the
local importers have little say.


.... Phil

 

[kreed]

On Dec 26, 4:57 am, David Eather <eat...@tpg.com.au> wrote:

On 25/12/2011 1:06 PM, TonyS wrote:









On 25/12/2011 9:33 AM, kreed wrote:
On Dec 25, 7:01 am, David Eather<eat...@tpg.com.au> wrote:
On 24/12/2011 1:59 PM, geoff wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"<phi...@tpg.com.au
wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally about.

Unless he has no pride.

geoff

What Dick used to do was sell you resistors that with a 98% profit
margin and tantalum's with an 86% margin*. Then he got on TV to complain
how IKEA was ripping of Australians

* my very first job was as a salesman at DSE Chermside.
--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

Strange how they always see their own worst faults in others isnt
it ? Never been to Ikea, so dont know what their pricing is like.

Really? How much would your mark up be if you'd have to re-package a
penny article and sell it in retail quantities, keeping it on stock over
years? Keep in mind you have to make a profit.

He didn't have to make a profit on sales of each resistor, only on the
business overall. If DSE decided not to sell resistors because selling
them one or two at a time was not profitable, then he would have found
less people coming in for the profitable items.

But before you make those criticisms. Dick Smith used to pride itself on
being on of the countries *20* *most* *profitable* business so they were
raking it in hand-over-fist. The only things they didn't have big
margins on were brand name items like their TEAC amp, Weller and Scope
soldering irons.

--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

The good old days.


Now they are a company that sells items that everyone else sells, such
as phones,
cameras, computers, tv's, basic hifi systems and so on.



At our local DS, they have got within a short distance Harvey Norman,
Good Guys etc who (here)
sell most of the DSE range, as well as others such as Officeworks and
Telstra, Optus etc mobile phone dealers who
also compete with them on some of DS's items such as computers,
cameras and mobile phones.



In other words, what was once a store that was fairly unique back then
is now is "just another consumer electronics" store and are subject to
heavy competition in most of their lines. While I'm not saying that
sticking to the traditional DSE format would have raked in huge
profits, I do think that those who did still go there to buy
components or similar, (and don't now) may also have liked or needed
other things that they see while in there and made an impulse
purchase. It may also have been the preferred place to buy that TV,
PC etc as they were used to going there in the first place, know what
they stock, know the staff, know where the store is etc.

How much of a factor this was in the real world of retail I have no
idea, but Im sure (I hope) it was considered before deciding to dump
the component range.

Now they just go anywhere - like everyone else.

 

[geoff]

T.T. wrote:

"Phil Allison" <phil_a@tpg.com.au> wrote in message

I know what a silversmith does and I have seen a locksmith at work.
But a Dick Smith?

In Porirua there was a Dick Smith right next to a LockSmith. Nice signs and
all.

geoff

 

[geoff]

Jeßus wrote:

On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 16:59:16 +1300, "geoff" <geoff@nospampaf.co.nz
wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"
phil_a@tpg.com.au> wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally
about.

Unless he has no pride.

Indeed. Well, AFAIK Dick did sell his name and image, so...
OTOH, if I were him, I'd be trying to divorce myself from the DSE
brand as much as possible at this point. Perhaps he ought to change
his name by deed poll!

Wasn't there some rumoured rider they had to keep selling components and
other basic items to retain the Dick Smith 'endorsement' and naming rights,
given that was what Dick was so enthusiastic about making available to
budding tecnical generations ?

geoff

 

[Barry]

On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 15:46:52 +1100, "T.T." <tonyt92@bigpond.com>
wrote:

"Phil Allison" <phil_a@tpg.com.au> wrote in message
news:9ll1tkFpl3U1@mid.individual.net...

"geoff"

Jeßus wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally about.


** Dick sold his name and the " Dick face " logo to Woollies for a tidy
sum - you know.

For a while time in the 70s, delivery vans had the Dick face logo on the
back with the words:

" The Electronic Dick "

in large, black letters.


... Phil


I know what a silversmith does and I have seen a locksmith at work.
But a Dick Smith?

What about the Yellow Pages ad which listed Dick Jones cleaning
service as Jones Dick cleaning service?

 

[Jeßus]

On Tue, 27 Dec 2011 14:04:55 +1300, "geoff" <geoff@nospampaf.co.nz>
wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 16:59:16 +1300, "geoff" <geoff@nospampaf.co.nz
wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"
phil_a@tpg.com.au> wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally
about.

Unless he has no pride.

Indeed. Well, AFAIK Dick did sell his name and image, so...
OTOH, if I were him, I'd be trying to divorce myself from the DSE
brand as much as possible at this point. Perhaps he ought to change
his name by deed poll!

Wasn't there some rumoured rider they had to keep selling components and
other basic items to retain the Dick Smith 'endorsement' and naming rights,
given that was what Dick was so enthusiastic about making available to
budding tecnical generations ?

Possibly the rider was only for a set amount of years? I've no idea if
such a rider existed or not though.

 

[kreed]

On Dec 27, 11:04 am, "geoff" <ge...@nospampaf.co.nz> wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 16:59:16 +1300, "geoff" <ge...@nospampaf.co.nz
wrote:

Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"
phi...@tpg.com.au> wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally
about.

Unless he has no pride.

Indeed. Well, AFAIK Dick did sell his name and image, so...
OTOH, if I were him, I'd be trying to divorce myself from the DSE
brand as much as possible at this point. Perhaps he ought to change
his name by deed poll!

Wasn't there some rumoured rider they had to keep selling components and
other basic  items to retain the Dick Smith 'endorsement' and naming rights,
given that was what Dick was so enthusiastic about making available to
budding tecnical generations ?

geoff

Sufficient bucks would over ride that

 

[David Eather]

On 25/12/2011 7:01 AM, David Eather wrote:

On 24/12/2011 1:59 PM, geoff wrote:
Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:26:47 +1100, "Phil Allison"<phil_a@tpg.com.au
wrote:

What an unfortunate subject title (shudder).

"Exposed Dick" ?!!!

Surely the man hiumself should sue Woolworths to take his face off
everything, as they now do zero of what his chain was originally about.

Unless he has no pride.

geoff



What Dick used to do was sell you resistors that with a 98% profit
margin and tantalum's with an 86% margin*. Then he got on TV to complain
how IKEA was ripping of Australians

* my very first job was as a salesman at DSE Chermside.

There may be an miss read in what DSE used to call a profit margin. I
assure you this is what DSE used:

A product that sold with a 98% profit margin meant (to DSE - I had an
argument and had to check it more than once) that of the product sales
price (say 3 cents for a resistor) 98% of that 3 cents was profit. Only
0.2% was the product cost to DSE.

The staff discount scheme was you could buy anything for your own use
for cost price plus 10%. I forget how many resistors you could get for a
cent - they were so cheap you only bought the 1% metal film and tantalum
caps that retailed for over a dollar were less than 20 cents. Everyone
had lots of experience in using this scheme, I assure you this is
accurate.

--
We have failed to address the fundamental truth that endless growth is
impossible in a finite world.

 

[David]

In article <9lie89Fu78U1@mid.individual.net>,
"Phil Allison" <phil_a@tpg.com.au> wrote:

** From the SMH:

Dick Smith and other retailers exposed for selling returned items as new.

http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/computers/used-sold-as-new-dick-smith-says-
it-wouldnt-happen-if-he-was-in-charge-20111223-1p890.html

http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/computers/exposed-new-dick-smith-hard-drive
-full-of-pirated-movies-20111222-1p6eh.html

http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/computers/new-goods-scandal--more-stores-ac
cused-20111223-1p80h.html

Anyone who has ever had anything to do with retailing knows that any item
returned in presentable condition goes right back on the shelf. That is why
retailers will not accept damaged items for return nor items with no
packaging.

DSEs famous 7 or 14 day " satisfaction guarantee" was all about doing just
this.

But with digital storage media, the subsequent owner can be in for a nasty
surprise ...

It ain't happed to me, but I have been sold faulty valves and transistors
where I was certainly not the first owner.


... Phil

MMMmm maybe DSE are not doing the right thing in some stores, but the
ones I frequent have a label on returned stuff saying it is returned,
and why it was returned. Cant be fairer than that

David

 

[Phil Allison]

"David"


** FUCK OFF - MORON !!!!

 

[David]

In article <9qcb48FcbiU1@mid.individual.net>,
"Phil Allison" <phil_a@tpg.com.au> wrote:

"David"


** FUCK OFF - MORON !!!!

Thanks Phil. For a while I thought you had forgotten me. xx

David