I actually think RadioShack can turn things around. "Hacking" electronics is gaining ground esp with Arduino, Rpi, etc. Here's what I would do:
- Beef up stock of "maker" electronics, Arduino's, Rpi, modules, kits etc.
- Buy/build modules/kits, work with suppliers like SparkFun, Shmart, Adafruit for help in this area
- Create "recipes" for building electronics and guide customers through purchasing the materials
- Clear out all the rip-off electronics unless you are willing to match Amazon prices.
- Get rid of smartphones, who buys these from Radio Shack???
- Most importantly, hold regular (weekly) free "maker sessions" for kids to learn principles of electronics and get them excited about it...similar to what Home Depot does
The more they focus on building/diy electronics the better, this is higher margin (and lower price) than simply retailing finished electronics, although they'll need to do some of that too I suppose.
If you've been to Radio Shack recently, they have a decent number of Arduino kits and the like.. however I don't think people are not dense enough to pay $60 for a kit you can purchase for $20 on Amazon. I think their was a point where they could have course corrected though I think they missed the exit half a decade ago.
I bet they'd pay 10 bucks an hour for shop time with access to tools and advice, and buy arduinos at a slight premium out of impatience to get projects done.
True they have a weak supply of Arduino stuff. Since its mostly open hardware they could probably source low cost kits instead of trying to gouge customers. I've been there recently and it took me all of 2 minutes to look through their entire inventory... Imagine an entire wall of different modules, sensors, servos, etc etc... that would get me in the store!
The more they focus on building/diy electronics the better, this is higher margin (and lower price) than simply retailing finished electronics, although they'll need to do some of that too I suppose.