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NCIX has often been referenced as a Canadian electronics retailer, but it just declared bankruptcy today: https://www.anandtech.com/show/12115/nc ... g-attempts

Bankruptcy does not always mean going out of business, but it's never a good sign.

Most likely the company shouldn't have done both retail and online at the same time. Retail is very hard to do, due to high overhead and low margins.

No one else is joining in?

In the last portion of latest Linus Tech Tips' WAN Show Linus talks a decent amount of what he thinks went wrong with NCIX and the mismanagement that occurred while he still worked there. For those who don't know Linus started at NCIX and while obviously he worked on their videos and such early on also was quite high in their management chain before he left.

Youtube code because apparently I can't post links: KMaWSinw4MI?t=41m33s

NICX had been in my top 3 sources of PC parts for a long time. The others are Canada Computers and Newegg.ca.

NICX made a big brick and mortar push into Ontario a number of years ago. When that happened I became a regular. I noticed something was up this summer when my Ryzen build parts were redirected for pickup to a grim warehouse location north of Toronto. Shortly after that NICX closed all of their Ontario retail locations. I stopped buying from them at that point.

mudcore wrote:

In the last portion of latest Linus Tech Tips' WAN Show Linus talks a decent amount of what he thinks went wrong with NCIX and the mismanagement that occurred while he still worked there.

I watched that and I was stunned. If I was him I would not have said a damn thing about his NICX exit deal on a youtube video.

End User wrote:

mudcore wrote:

In the last portion of latest Linus Tech Tips' WAN Show Linus talks a decent amount of what he thinks went wrong with NCIX and the mismanagement that occurred while he still worked there.

I watched that and I was stunned. If I was him I would not have said a damn thing about his NICX exit deal on a youtube video.

I got the impression he was venting after years and years of having it locked inside. It seemed like only a small drip of what he wanted to say but like you'd I'd have kept my mouth shut. Still it was very interesting to hear it.

I used to buy everything from NCIX, but I gradually shifted over to Newegg simply because finding things was a pain on NCIX's site.

Sad to see it end like this.

K-L-Waster wrote:

I used to buy everything from NCIX, but I gradually shifted over to Newegg simply because finding things was a pain on NCIX's site.

Sad to see it end like this.

I think that Western civilization is trending towards One Company Per Industry, with the definition of "Industry" being fairly flexible.

"Go Big, Go Niche, or Go Away" and all that.

Thing is, NCIX used to do a really good job of being Canada's answer to Newegg (or at least an earlier, less sophisticated edition of Newegg).

Seems their problem was they decided they wanted to become Future Shop. Can't see why -- that model showed it was obsolete for Future Shop, so what would make it relevant for anyone else? Should have stuck with the fast-response, low-overhead model they started with -- that model was working for them.

Didn't need to listen to Linus to see the major issues. Any business major with a brain and some tech sense should see the way the B&M PC industry has been going. Dedicated national (and local) PC chains had been going bust for the last 20 years before Amazon even existed. ComputerLand, then Egghead Software, followed by CompUSA. Even Circuit City and RadioShack after that.

Even Best Buy eventually admitted the big-box model was no longer profitable nor sustainable and has been focusing on smaller stores in recent years. Which ironically is exactly what Linus proposed before BB's bubble popped. NCIX spending heavily to invest in B&M stores after Circuit City had expired and TigerDirect was in trouble was an obvious bad decision, and if management was making those sort of bad decisions regularly then it would be self-evident that the company wouldn't be around for much longer.

NCIX has closed all of its physical locations, it appears they will try and keep the online stores going.

TigerDirect was absolute ***t. Don’t even mention it in the same post as NCIX (RIP).

NICX expanded into a market that was already covered by a well established high quality competititor (Canada Computers).

End User wrote:

TigerDirect was absolute ***t. Don’t even mention it in the same post as NCIX (RIP).

NICX expanded into a market that was already covered by a well established high quality competititor (Canada Computers).

Into a declining market, no less. But it goes beyond that. I'm in the 7th largest US city and we don't have a Frys, or a Microcenter. The Eggheads all closed, the single CompUSA closed, all the CircuitCities closed. The only comp stores here are hole-in-the-walls (quite literally) and Altex, a local company that expanded to three stores. They're only successful because they cater to businesses as much as consumers, sell lots of specialized technician gear, offer installation cabling & related services, and are in effect miniature Fry's stores. That's all we have here, yet Frys and Microcenter both still think there isn't enough market to attempt to open a location in town.

End User wrote:

TigerDirect was absolute ***t. Don’t even mention it in the same post as NCIX (RIP).

NICX expanded into a market that was already covered by a well established high quality competititor (Canada Computers).

The truth might hurt but it is what it is. Tigerdirect and NCIX are both equals. They charged high prices and there's better alternates to both. I wish someone would replace bestbuy because there prices are over the top.

Bestbuy probably survives on TV sales alone.
We had 2 ComUSA's in town until they shuttered them, which was not that long ago. They even rebranded the one as TigerDirect after the buyout. The biggest "computer" store in town here sell used corporate systems for a great price (~$150 with 19" LCD monitor). The have also moved into the managed VOIP solutions market and do cabling etc.

mcarson09 wrote:

End User wrote:

TigerDirect was absolute ***t. Don’t even mention it in the same post as NCIX (RIP).

NICX expanded into a market that was already covered by a well established high quality competititor (Canada Computers).

The truth might hurt but it is what it is. Tigerdirect and NCIX are both equals. They charged high prices and there's better alternates to both. I wish someone would replace bestbuy because there prices are over the top.

I used to visit the local TigerDirect B&M mostly out of convenience; they were on my way home from work. The store was a dumpster fire. Poorly organized, horrible customer service, and prices that ranged from pretty good to "LOL, what? You've got to be kidding!" I did find some great deals back in the day when they had their clearance room though (basically an even more disorganized mess with piles of stuff you could pick through looking for bargains). My collection of Chieftec full tower cases all came from their clearance room; IIRC I paid like $25 each for them. I think they've closed most (if not all) of their B&M stores now.

Usacomp2k3 wrote:

Bestbuy probably survives on TV sales alone.
We had 2 ComUSA's in town until they shuttered them, which was not that long ago. They even rebranded the one as TigerDirect after the buyout. The biggest "computer" store in town here sell used corporate systems for a great price (~$150 with 19" LCD monitor). The have also moved into the managed VOIP solutions market and do cabling etc.

IIRC I read somewhere that major appliances are where Best Buy makes most of their money these days.

Micro Center still seems to be doing OK. When I changed jobs a few years back I started going there on my way home from work -- spot a pattern? Now that I work in the city and take public transit to work that's no longer a convenient option.

Fry's is weird. Gigantic cavernous place with lots of stuff, but not well organized and never seems to be particularly busy. Figure they'll probably be the next to go.

mcarson09 wrote:

The truth might hurt but it is what it is. Tigerdirect and NCIX are both equals. They charged high prices and there's better alternates to both. I wish someone would replace bestbuy because there prices are over the top.

NCIX charges high prices? Not too sure what you are talking about. In Canada, I routinely price-compare NCIX and Canada Computers. Each of them had their fair share of wins, depending on the time. They pretty much rotate discounts on the same items. When NCIX established a presence in the Toronto north suburb area it pretty much saved shipping for me compared to just picking up at a local CC.

mcarson09 wrote:

End User wrote:

TigerDirect was absolute ***t. Don’t even mention it in the same post as NCIX (RIP).

NICX expanded into a market that was already covered by a well established high quality competititor (Canada Computers).

The truth might hurt but it is what it is. Tigerdirect and NCIX are both equals. They charged high prices and there's better alternates to both. I wish someone would replace bestbuy because there prices are over the top.

Gotta say I never had a problem with NCIX's prices. (TigerDirect was over-priced, granted.)

Kougar wrote:

End User wrote:

TigerDirect was absolute ***t. Don’t even mention it in the same post as NCIX (RIP).

NICX expanded into a market that was already covered by a well established high quality competititor (Canada Computers).

Into a declining market, no less. But it goes beyond that. I'm in the 7th largest US city and we don't have a Frys, or a Microcenter. The Eggheads all closed, the single CompUSA closed, all the CircuitCities closed. The only comp stores here are hole-in-the-walls (quite literally) and Altex, a local company that expanded to three stores. They're only successful because they cater to businesses as much as consumers, sell lots of specialized technician gear, offer installation cabling & related services, and are in effect miniature Fry's stores. That's all we have here, yet Frys and Microcenter both still think there isn't enough market to attempt to open a location in town.

Ah, a fellow San Antonian, I see. I've been to Altex a couple of times, but only when I needed something immediately. I don't think they're even open on Sundays. The guys who work there are pretty annoying. I really wish Fry's or Microcenter would open a store here. I've been to the Fry's up in Austin once and it was pretty amazing, at least compared to what we have here. It'd be nice to have that kind of selection available without having to order online.

astrotech66 wrote:

Ah, a fellow San Antonian, I see. I've been to Altex a couple of times, but only when I needed something immediately. I don't think they're even open on Sundays. The guys who work there are pretty annoying. I really wish Fry's or Microcenter would open a store here. I've been to the Fry's up in Austin once and it was pretty amazing, at least compared to what we have here. It'd be nice to have that kind of selection available without having to order online.

See, I knew there had to be others here. And yes they aren't even open on Sundays. Looks like they closed all but one location in Austin too, that lone Fry's captured what's left of that market. I'm the same way, I'll go to Altex if I need a cable or connector or something not worth the cost of shipping, but anything else isn't worthwhile. I just got a MSI DS200 mouse as the width fits my hand nicely... had been eyeing it at Altex for a few months, but it was literally half the price online with free shipping during BF week.

I used to like B&M stores for the demo products to find mice or keyboards but everyone is doing away with the try-before-ya-buy demos. Cases were another thing, they cost so much to ship that buying local used to be cheaper but not even that is true anymore. Fry's has even stopped stocking the largest cases, it's mostly only midtowers on down now. Practically all of my cases were bought from Altex or Fry's come to think of it, including my first case, the Antec version of JBI's Chieftec towers over a decade ago. Altex used to have a generous clearance/returns section and that's where I found it.

just brew it! wrote:

Fry's is weird. Gigantic cavernous place with lots of stuff, but not well organized and never seems to be particularly busy. Figure they'll probably be the next to go.

Huge yes, but they sell a ton of audio / TVs and appliances like BB, and formerly Sears. Couldn't agree more that the organization is a true mess... HDMI cables are located in a dozen places within the store. I found one section with HDMI and VGA, yet I had to go elsewhere in the store to find Displayport also next to more HDMI. Literally HDMI cables were in >6 different areas. Flash drives are at the opposite wall of the store from microSD cards too... go figure. They could probably shrink the store by a large margin if they didn't have a fourth of the stuff stocked in multiple locations. I'm going to assume a computer autonomously decided product layout for that store.

Kougar wrote:

Huge yes, but they sell a ton of audio / TVs and appliances like BB, and formerly Sears. Couldn't agree more that the organization is a true mess... HDMI cables are located in a dozen places within the store. I found one section with HDMI and VGA, yet I had to go elsewhere in the store to find Displayport also next to more HDMI. Literally HDMI cables were in >6 different areas. Flash drives are at the opposite wall of the store from microSD cards too... go figure. They could probably shrink the store by a large margin if they didn't have a fourth of the stuff stocked in multiple locations. I'm going to assume a computer autonomously decided product layout for that store.

I think that's a "you might also be looking for..." reasoning that large stores can afford to indulge. Example: a small town hardware store will stock each product in one and only one location, for example duck tape is stocked in one aisle with all other tapes and adhesive products. But Home Depot will have duck tape stocked both in the paint supplies aisle and over near HVAC. Target and Walmart have standard duck tape colors stocked in home improvement but also have custom patterned types and pastel colors stocked in the craft area. And so forth.

I am saddened. When I first started getting into computers NCIX was my go-to store for everything when I was on the East coast. But then I moved to Ontario and I am surrounded by Canada Computer retail stores so I'll just hop over there.

Whenever I go to NCIX webpage now though I find the search to be a steaming pile of feces. The webpage sorting never seems to work for me (Edge and Firefox) and I can't seem to find anything...so back to Canada Computers.

whm1974 wrote:

No one else is joining in?

But I don't want to go bankrupt?

-or-

join in what?

I had a "backordered" 8700k ordered from NCIX.

I saw Newegg had stock and ordered one from them, and requested they cancel my order and issue me a refund.

NCIX canceled my order on the 20th of November, and I still haven't seen a penny.

Those broke-ass mofos stole $513.12 from me and now I have to wait 6-8 weeks for Visa to claw it back.

Kougar wrote:

Even Best Buy eventually admitted the big-box model was no longer profitable nor sustainable and has been focusing on smaller stores in recent years. Which ironically is exactly what Linus proposed before BB's bubble popped.

NCIX B&M locations were "smaller stores"

Sargent Duck wrote:

I am saddened. When I first started getting into computers NCIX was my go-to store for everything when I was on the East coast. But then I moved to Ontario and I am surrounded by Canada Computer retail stores so I'll just hop over there.

Whenever I go to NCIX webpage now though I find the search to be a steaming pile of feces. The webpage sorting never seems to work for me (Edge and Firefox) and I can't seem to find anything...so back to Canada Computers.

Yeah. This is a huge blow to Canadian PC enthusiasts. Canada Computers has never had the best reputation. And Newegg treats Canada as an afterthought. Frequently items are more expensive in Canada, exchange rate aside (though sometimes there are coordinated discounts with Newegg.com). And Newegg.ca doesn't stock the full complement of items that Newegg.com has.

As a Canadian, I'm hoping that BHphotovideo starts stocking more PC gear.

cynan wrote:

Kougar wrote:

Even Best Buy eventually admitted the big-box model was no longer profitable nor sustainable and has been focusing on smaller stores in recent years. Which ironically is exactly what Linus proposed before BB's bubble popped.

NCIX B&M locations were "smaller stores"

Except, NCIX stores were focused on computers. BB offered much more than just computer stuff, particularly the more profitable home appliances, TVs, and audio. My point was if BB couldn't make it work with more profitable segments then a focused computer store like NCIX is going to have serious trouble.

Fry's has been tightening its belt for some time, they no longer have entire aisles of demo mice, keyboards, or a wall of unboxed motherboards on display. They also stopped carrying a lot of more niche inventory that sold sparingly, such as Corsair's 900D. Was talking with one guy, apparently they sold an average of less than one a month of those.

Flying Fox wrote:

mcarson09 wrote:

The truth might hurt but it is what it is. Tigerdirect and NCIX are both equals. They charged high prices and there's better alternates to both. I wish someone would replace bestbuy because there prices are over the top.

NCIX charges high prices? Not too sure what you are talking about. In Canada, I routinely price-compare NCIX and Canada Computers. Each of them had their fair share of wins, depending on the time. They pretty much rotate discounts on the same items. When NCIX established a presence in the Toronto north suburb area it pretty much saved shipping for me compared to just picking up at a local CC.

NCIX had a US site site and their prices were insane. Just because Canadians are used to paying high prices doesn't mean the US will.

Kougar wrote:

cynan wrote:

Kougar wrote:

Even Best Buy eventually admitted the big-box model was no longer profitable nor sustainable and has been focusing on smaller stores in recent years. Which ironically is exactly what Linus proposed before BB's bubble popped.

NCIX B&M locations were "smaller stores"

Except, NCIX stores were focused on computers. BB offered much more than just computer stuff, particularly the more profitable home appliances, TVs, and audio. My point was if BB couldn't make it work with more profitable segments then a focused computer store like NCIX is going to have serious trouble.

Fry's has been tightening its belt for some time, they no longer have entire aisles of demo mice, keyboards, or a wall of unboxed motherboards on display. They also stopped carrying a lot of more niche inventory that sold sparingly, such as Corsair's 900D. Was talking with one guy, apparently they sold an average of less than one a month of those.

For the record the 900D is too big of a case for just an ATX motherboard. It's nice for an ETX board though.
Most places don't even have a fry's. Compusa and Circuitcity both shut down when the economy tanked. In the US fry's only has stores in nine states.

ya it's a bummer,

One of the nicest things was their price matching. Instead of getting parts from all over, could get them all from there and price match them all.