Why I Stopped Shopping at Circuit City

I don’t know when I first became aware of Circuit City, but once I turned 16 and was able to drive myself places, Circuit City was probably my most-visited store.  I was really into stereo equipment, and Circuit City had lots of stereo equipment.

I had never heard of Best Buy, and I think the first one in our area didn’t arrive until the late 90s.  But once I discovered Best Buy, I practically never set foot in a Circuit City again.

The reason is simple: Best Buy was bright, inside & out, whereas Circuit City was dark and depressing.  Best Buy’s colors are yellow, a little purple, and lots of white; Circuit City’s colors are... maroon and gray.

That may seem like a small thing, but I think it’s not.  I think that, all other things being equal, people will tend to shop at stores that are bright rather than ones that are dark, perhaps only subconsciously.  Certainly that’s true in my case.  You might argue that all other things aren’t equal in this case, but whatever other differences they had, Circuit City and Best Buy are fundamentally the same kind of store selling the same kind of stuff.

Or at least, they were.  Circuit City’s gone now.  There were probably many factors that led to their demise, but for me, Circuit City lost my business for reasons having nothing to do with products or services or prices.