By editorial@silicon.com, 17 October 2001 10:00
COMMENT Times may be tough, but PC retailer Tiny is still thinking big. While others, notably Gateway, have shied away from the market, wounded by its shrinking growth, Tiny is forging ahead with store expansion. Have they gone completely mad? Probably not. In fact, this looks like it could be quite a shrewd move for the not-so-tiny retailer. Concession stores, in other words outlets inside larger stores, have significantly lower overheads than the average high street store. Tiny already has an arrangement with one such retailer, Powerhouse, in Scotland, and is looking to build on its string of own-brand high street outlets with an additional presence in 140 Powerhouse stores in England. It's a relatively risk-free way of gambling in a harsh economic climate. But the picture might be even bigger than that. It's possible Tiny will use its in-store presence as a footprint to direct sales to its website or even its other retail stores. In stressful times, the possibility of a competitor gaining ground is a bitter pill for the guys at Time Computers to swallow. So much so that Time describes Tiny's tactical shift as "not making any sense". Well it makes sense to us. During the lows, you've got to be creative and stick your neck out with the odd calculated risk. Time might be quick to knock Tiny's endeavours, but let's just see who will be around to see out the storm in the PC market.
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