I blogged about John Browett and visiting Currys last August. I had the micro-switch of another mouse broke today, so I went to get a new one. For the heck of it, I wanted to try the same store. (For those not in UK, PC World Currys is a big chain of electronics stores, that carries computers, TVs and everything between.)
The store had redone the shelving since last visit, so I walked around taking peeks of what the product placement was. I couldn’t see mice spread around the store this time, but stumbled upon a shelf that promoted the exact thing I wanted to find – a red Logitech m185. It’s a simple wireless mouse that feels great in my hand, and the batter lifetime is awesome. Price? £11.99, down from £14.99.
I couldn’t immediately peek other mouses but I wanted to check if the mouse was a good deal, so I peeked around and found the actual mouse shelf at the other end of the shelf. The setup felt confusing with no price labels placed near any of the product packages, until I realized there was a display with demo units on top of the shelf, with prices. The way the demo shelf had been placed made it hard to spot, so I suspect it was a failed adaptation of the original demo shelf design to fit that particular shop. And of course, not all units were being displayed. To make things interesting, the same red m185 was also being sold on this shelf. Price? £9.99, down from £12.99. Dafuq?
Good news was, £9.99 is what I had to pay. I’d again already committed to the higher price, so Currys lost £2 on my transaction. Their loss, and confirms my view on the chain being mismanaged. Maybe Browett can get his job back at Currys, and apply his new Apple knowledge to fix things.
Fry’s is the same way in the states. It’s rather disorganized, but you can generally find what you want. In fact, you may find it in three places at three different price points. I think it’s part of the charm. :)