05-08-2004, 06:00 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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PalmOne, Facing Declining Sales, Opens Retail Stores
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=581&e=2&u=/nm/20040507/tc_nm/tech_palmone_dc
"PalmOne Inc., faced with slumping sales of what was once a must-have consumer gadget, is taking the story of handheld computers directly to the public with its own retail stores. Following in the footsteps of electronics makers Apple Computer Inc., Gateway and Sony Corp, PalmOne on Friday unveiled its flagship store in Philadelphia's International Airport. It brings to 11 locations the Milpitas, California-based company has quietly opened since 2002."
I suspect they will continue to follow in Gateway's steps and eventually close them all. I just cannot fathom that any PDA maker could make a go with retail stores long term. Even Dell is treading very carefully in a retail presence by limiting themselves to kiosks, which basically have product samples of popular items and are manned by personnel that aid the public in ordering Dell equipment online.
Palm Infocenter has a bit more information as well as a few photos of the new store.
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05-08-2004, 06:02 PM
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5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
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Yeah... I wouldn't mind seeing a "PDA Store" around here, but focused on just one company? Nah.
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05-08-2004, 06:13 PM
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Mystic
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 1,639
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I would have thought a kiosk type location would work for this kind of thing, especially in a location with plenty of business people. The PHL airport idea they have is good, but a full store and all that overhead will be a killer.
There is already a Staples there selling PDAs. I would rather go somewhere like that where I could compare different types. Of course, I would then look for the lowest price online.
One advantage might be that having just the one brand, the sales people might actually know a bit about the products.
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David
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05-08-2004, 06:16 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,097
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And so begins Palm's official decline...
Just like Gateway
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05-08-2004, 06:17 PM
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Moderator
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Wow! That sounds like a real money maker! :roll:
If anything, a kiosk in the airport might work. Try to get some of those travelers to buy a device and throw in some e-books and some music (or better yet, let them browse Peanut press and download a set number of books)
Ultimately though, this sounds like a failure...
Steve
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05-08-2004, 06:17 PM
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5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
Join Date: Jul 2003
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Kacey Green
And so begins Palm's official decline...
Just like Gateway
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I think that's what Ed was already saying.
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05-08-2004, 06:20 PM
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Swami
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 4,396
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Palm Stores
Quote:
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Originally Posted by dh
I would have thought a kiosk type location would work for this kind of thing, especially in a location with plenty of business people. The PHL airport idea they have is good, but a full store and all that overhead will be a killer.
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That's what I think, too. However, some stores get by selling much lower margin items than PDAs; of course, they sell in much higher volumes, too.
Another alternative is that they are just showcase stores, like Sony runs. I've read that Sony doesn't really expect a lot of people to buy at their stores, but they want a place where people can play with the latest toys.
However, that doesn't seem like it would work for PDAs, either, because PDAs are generally cheaper than the high-end items Sony sells.
Steve
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05-08-2004, 06:22 PM
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Mystic
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 1,639
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Steven Cedrone
If anything, a kiosk in the airport might work. Try to get some of those travelers to buy a device and throw in some e-books and some music (or better yet, let them browse Peanut press and download a set number of books)
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Or, along with the books, they could sell movies, already loaded onto SD cards ready to watch on the flight.
The customer will have to buy an adaptor for the power outlet on the plain as well. Heck, we can double the price of the Palm easily with all these add-ons.
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Cheers!
David
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05-08-2004, 06:38 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,097
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Kati Compton
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Kacey Green
And so begins Palm's official decline...
Just like Gateway
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I think that's what Ed was already saying. |
I know, I was saying that it was bad before, but now it's official just like gateway.
They said "hmm, lets expand our sales scope, instead of building a better product and marketing better"
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05-08-2004, 06:45 PM
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Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 6,878
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by dh
Or, along with the books, they could sell movies, already loaded onto SD cards ready to watch on the flight.
The customer will have to buy an adaptor for the power outlet on the plain as well. Heck, we can double the price of the Palm easily with all these add-ons.
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Movies, books, songs, storage cards, WIFI, headphones, battery extenders, power adapters, and ,of course, a nice case as well! All at incredibly high mark-ups!:wink:
Steve
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"My eyes are rolling back in my head so far I can see my grey matter bubbling and frothing from reading this thread....bleh." JD
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