 | Disappearing PlacesAn archive and collective map of places that no longer exist, at least not as they once did. |
Somebody Beat The Wiz
Posted On Monday April 23, 2007 By Foo
For those of you outside the northeast The Wiz is an electronics retailer much like Best Buy, Circuit City, or Fry’s. Their slogan was “Nobody Beats The Wiz.” I ended up shopping there a lot while I was attending NYU. I bought my iPod there. You know, the brick sized 5GB one? I’m too embarrassed to use it in public now because it’s so freaking massive compared to the new ones. I feel like a stone age loser for having this huge antique MP3 player.
When Best Buy finally arrived in Manhattan I guess The Wiz just couldn’t take the heat and moved out. To be honest I hate Best Buy, it’s never a pleasant experience when I shop there. And I’ve held a grudge against them since I got laid off from my first job because the regional record store chain I worked for went out of business soon after Best Buy opened in my hometown. People always complain about Wal-Mart ruining local business, but the truth is all big box retailers share that responsibility, Best Buy and The Wiz included.
I guess what I’m saying is I don’t miss The Wiz, to me they were just as crappy as Best Buy, but I do miss other companies that Best Buy has helped eliminate. I’m worried that some day they will be our single crappy choice.
Tags: electronics, ipod, store