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Fry's Electronic Store VP Allegedly Embezzled $65 Million For Gambling Debts, Probably Pocketed Some Slim Jims and an Odwallas Too

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infmom
12/24/08

In reply to Fry's Electronic Store VP Allegedly Embezzled $65 Million For Gambling Debts, Probably Pocketed Some Slim Jims and an Odwallas Too
I worked at Fry's for three years. Started as a cashier and ended up working as a computer salesperson AND a service tech at the same time. (The manager liked me.) First woman promoted to sales in the computer dept in that store. First person of either gender to pass the A+ test. Worked with some of the finest people I've ever had the privilege to know (almost none of whom were in management).

Fry's owners are convinced that every employee in every store is only there for one reason, to steal them blind. I guess they were right!
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zewkin
12/24/08

In reply to Fry's Electronic Store VP Allegedly Embezzled $65 Million For Gambling Debts, Probably Pocketed Some Slim Jims and an Odwallas Too
So that's why Fry's can't afford a decent cash register system. I always found it funny that this store with all the latest gadget tech has the oldest computers for cash registering. Always fun to be stuck in line when the computers go down for an hour.
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infmom
12/24/08

@zewkin: Fry's didn't even have bar code scanners till almost the year 2000. When I left in 1999, their home-brew POS software would not run on a Pentium computer (I am not making this up). The terminals in the store were all 486s, the cheapest model they could store-use. There were only three computers in the entire store that could run Windows--one on the manager's desk, one in Customer Relations and the third behind the supervisor's podium in Customer Service.

I don't know if anything has changed (I kind of doubt it) but in those days items were never removed from the database no matter how long ago they'd been discontinued. There is no "practice mode" for new employees, so if they practice adding customers by typing in George Bush or Bill Clinton (or whatever) it lets them. Those bogus customers were never deleted either.

There was no real search capability in the software because there was no consistency in the way things were entered. When I was selling computers I made a little notebook for myself with the codes for the items I got asked about a lot.

Fry's above all else teaches its employees how to survive paranoid management.
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Jrsy Devil's Advocate®
12/24/08

In reply to Fry's Electronic Store VP Allegedly Embezzled $65 Million For Gambling Debts, Probably Pocketed Some Slim Jims and an Odwallas Too
Looks like Fry's got burned...
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rezlab
12/23/08

In reply to Fry's Electronic Store VP Allegedly Embezzled $65 Million For Gambling Debts, Probably Pocketed Some Slim Jims and an Odwallas Too
Is it just me, but has Fry's has gone downhill over the years? It seems to be in complete disarray, with stuff thrown on the shelves, boxes opened with things missing and a complete lack of customer support. Reminds me of a big ass thrift store for technology,
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infmom
12/24/08

@rezlab: It's always been like that. :)
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scarbrtj
12/23/08

In reply to Fry's Electronic Store VP Allegedly Embezzled $65 Million For Gambling Debts, Probably Pocketed Some Slim Jims and an Odwallas Too
Ausaf Umar Siddiqui, you're a very bad man.

Right up there with M'Balz Es-Hari and Mustaf Herod Apyur-poupr.
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Barion
12/24/08

@scarbrtj: Is that from that SNL sketch with De Niro?
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scarbrtj
12/24/08

@Barion: ;)
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Hackintosh
12/23/08

In reply to Fry's Electronic Store VP Allegedly Embezzled $65 Million For Gambling Debts, Probably Pocketed Some Slim Jims and an Odwallas Too
I've never been to a Fry's Electronics store. I've seen one on my trip to Las Vegas, but never been inside one. But from the looks of it, it does seem to have a more convenient Register system.
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ripfire
12/23/08

@Hackintosh: Fry's used to be the best gadget store when you need to build a PC. But then, they didn't keep up with the internet trend early in the days and open an online store and now they're just another obsolete b&m store. Hell, even BB and CC's websites integrate well with their b&m stores.
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SwapMeet
12/23/08

@ripfire:

Yes, their online presence still sucks, but there's no other place I would go for PC parts. There's no way they're obsolete. They have one of the most comprehensive inventories of PC components, plus their prices are great. Can you buy an OEM processor from BB or CC?
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ripfire
12/23/08

@SwapMeet: No, but I get my goods on Newegg. :)
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WB
12/23/08

@ripfire: Sure, Newegg and other online stores are great sources, but nothing compares to walking into a store and hearing the angels sing as your vision fills with row upon row of all the things that fill Newegg's pages.

It's good to have a Fry's nearby when your power supply goes tango uniform. You could find the same thing on Newegg (assuming you have some means to access it other than your now dead PC) and the price would probably be a few dollars cheaper, but even Newegg's fastest shipping wouldn't get your PC back in action within an hour.
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ripfire
12/23/08

@WB: That is so true. I do remember having my power supply die on me once and I had nowhere else to turn to other than Fry's. Ok, I take it back; Fry's is not so obsolete after all... Hmm.. Unless of course Newegg allows will-call/local pickup. Thank you oh Ghost of Christmas Past!
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