Is it possible for RadioShack to survive? Experts believe that the 94-year-old company is going to declare bankruptcy in the coming weeks, but what are its plans after that? One report from inside the pre-bankruptcy negotiations is that the retailer plans to sell about half of its store leases to Sprint, turning them into Sprint stores, and shut down the rest.
Yes, that would mean that RadioShack as a retail brand would die, being replaced with two things we probably don’t need: more mobile phone stores and empty storefronts. There are currently about 4,300 Radio Shack stores. The store has been stuck in an odd position until now, with investors preventing it from closing stores to save money.
Shutting down the brand entirely isn’t the only option: it’s possible that the entire Sprint deal could fall apart, or that another company could swoop in and buy RadioShack. Another possibility that’s being discussed is co-branding the stores as RadioShack and Sprint: perhaps keeping some non-phone electronics and selling only Sprint phones, for example.
RadioShack in Talks to Sell Half Its Stores to Sprint, Shutter the Rest [Bloomberg News]
by Laura Northrup via Consumerist