Thread: Maplin stores
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Old 2nd Nov 2017, 12:11 am   #38
hamid_1
Heptode
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: High Wycombe, Bucks. UK.
Posts: 811
Default Re: Maplin stores

I'm a little bit surprised that Maplin has kept going for so long.

Originally they were a mail order company, a bit like RS or Farnell. Back in the late 1980s - early 1990s, when they started opening High Street shops, some of the stores were a bit like Argos or the RS trade counters. Not many goods were on display, instead you had to look up what you wanted in a catalogue, then give the catalogue numbers to the shop assistant. Not very elegant, but it worked. And in those days they mostly sold components and kits which didn't need to be displayed in an elegant way.

Nowadays they seem to have become like Tandy, selling radio controlled toys, gadgets and audio equipment as well as components. But Tandy disappeared from the UK many years ago. Sadly, Maplin seem to be heading the same way.

I will be sad if they do go altogether, although I'm not their best customer. On the odd occasion, I do buy a component or two from them, if it's not worth paying the postage for an online order or I don't want to wait. Some people moan about the pricing - 30p for a resistor that costs 1p online - but I think it's reasonable. Consider the cost of the shop assistant's time and the storage space for all of those components. I doubt if it's actually very profitable for them. And I might only buy a component from Maplin once or twice a year. I'm not going to keep them afloat like that.

Maplin do have a clearance section on their website which sometimes turns up some bargains. There are also a couple of traders who appear at my local car boot sale, selling customer returned Maplin goods for a fraction of their retail price (typically 10% of the new price). Some of the items are clearly damaged or have parts or accessories missing, but despite that, I've had a number of things that have worked, either straightaway or with a little fiddling. That's why I'll be sad if Maplin close down altogether, there'll be no more cheap ex-Maplin goodies at the car boot sale!
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