I was just in a client meeting when the client suddenly said “Totally Awesome is going out of business?!” He had just received an update on his laptop and saw this article in the Salt Lake Tribune. First LoveSac declares bankruptcy and now this. Seems like every business person in Utah who is the least bit zany is having issues.
Apparently it’s a done deal. I can’t say I’m all that sad to see them go, having had some negative experiences with Totally Awesome Computers about which I’ve previously posted on this blog. At the same time, being a business owner myself it is a bit sad to see any company go out of business, if only for the sake of the employees and customers, but also due to the fact that it probably didn’t need to happen.
As of this moment anything that can be said by myself on the matter is pure speculation, but here are my top five reasons for why I speculate TAC is going under:
1. The advertising stopped working. Maybe it was a fad, but maybe all the people who could be influenced by it already bought computers from TAC and there was no one else to market to.
2. Lack of focus. First computers, but then Dell Shanze buy a gun range, starts doing infomercials, and buys a hanggliding outfit?
3. Legal troubles. If you haven’t heard about Shanze waving a gun around in a Draper neighborhood go do some Google searching on it. Maybe the distractions got the better of him.
4. Not living up to the brand. The “brand” that TAC had could be summed up as better computers, fair prices, and excellent customer service. However, reality for many customers was quite the opposite. Maybe it finally caught up with him.
5. Maybe it’s just hard to compete with Dell. Companies generally go out of business because they aren’t making any profit, and it’s hard to make a profit selling computers when Dell does them so much cheaper and better.
