XM Satellite Radio is in the process of shutting down all of their kiosk sites nationwide and phasing the entire program, Orbitcast has learned.
The company cited budgetary reasons according to an XM spokesperson, stating that while sales were strong from the kiosk sites, the combination of general overhead fees and rental costs did not justify continuing further.
According to a person familiar with the matter, all employees involved with the kiosk program, including the national manager and district managers, were let go as a result. XM pointed out that many of their kiosk employees are hired on a seasonal basis.
Kiosk locations included Boca Raton, Citrus Park, Paramus, Danbury, Bethesda, Little Rock, Annapolis, Fair Oaks, Tysons, Pentagon City and Boston among others. According to the source, the Florida kiosks were shut down in early December, while others in New York, Washington DC, and Colorado were shut down shortly after Christmas. XM says that they are in the process of phasing out the remaining sites.
The XM Kiosk program started in 2004 and proved to be a successful initiative in its infancy. XM benefited not only from the brand exposure, but also from the additional distribution channel in areas like malls (where they didn't have much of a presence at the time).
Unfortunately, as the market matured and shifted more toward the OEM side (as evidenced by the recent retail numbers), XM says they chose not to move forward with the 3rd party agreements.
It makes sense -- the kiosks served their purpose well. The one in Bethesda was always hopping. No need for it anymore since retail sales are down and will likely remain that way.
Sad to see them go, and I feel for the kiosk workers who got laid off, but I can understand why XM axed the program. They should focus more on their online store instead.
It is too bad that satellite radio is doing such a poor job in retail sales. In most retail stores- from Best Buy to Sears-- you have to look and look to find SR-- and nobody is pushing it. OEM is great, but SR also needs retail in the long run!
It is too bad that satellite radio is doing such a poor job in retail sales. In most retail stores- from Best Buy to Sears-- you have to look and look to find SR-- and nobody is pushing it. OEM is great, but SR also needs retail in the long run!
It is too bad that satellite radio is doing such a poor job in retail sales. In most retail stores- from Best Buy to Sears-- you have to look and look to find SR-- and nobody is pushing it. OEM is great, but SR also needs retail in the long run!
As one of the employees in the picture it was a great ride and sales were good this year just another poor management decision by XM. I will miss it dearly.
This is simply a branding change people. The merger is upon us... why get caught with XM lemonade stands when they're Sirius?
I think it is a good decision. These guys have to cut costs pertaining to retail sales because retail is dead. Renting kiosk space in high-traffic areas is terribly expensive, then there is staffing on top of it.
Not only do the kiosks need to go, XM needs to minimize any R&D efforts for retail receivers, raise prices on them so they pay their way, and cut content expenditures that are aimed predominantly at retail. Personally, I believe this is their game plan as they, too, can see that retail isn't going to be the marketplace.
Instead of a line of new retail receivers every year, maybe a much smaller lineup every couple years (which makes them due any minute now).
The kiosk program was closed primarily to help the company save $$$ it needed to survive. It's not the only program slated for the chopping block - merger or no merger. I don't know the numbers on the kiosks but I've been told that they did more than a comp retailer like Circuit City or Best Buy.
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This only means one of two things...
1) XM has given up as a company, and are willing to dismantle an important part of the marketing campaign in order to save money, (lol)
or
2) The merger is imminent, and advertising a company that will fold itself into a merger is a waste of money.
I think I know which one is the answer.
or
3) XM finally realized mall kiosks are barely a good way to sell cheap sunglasses and magical rock incense, let along an expensive subscription satellite radio service. As Sirius' far superior retail performance has proven. But honestly, XM was probably only doing kiosks for visibility in the first place, and that marketing money could def. be better spent elsewhere.
Still, not the most confidence-inspiring move...
Basically, XM hasn't had a new unit for nearly two years, and what places like Best Buy and Circuit City stock is a mish mash, a hodgepode if you will, of older stuff. I bought a refurb Inno 1 but can't find an Inno 1 car kit at any retail store. They only have the Inno 2 accessories and the sales floor people don't have any knowledge of the line or the different models.
hoo hoo
@ Stack Pointer,
You couldnt be more wrong in what you said. Think about it, the kiosks were a major source of information not only for people that were thinking about getting XM but they also would get at least 20 or so questions per day about the merger. How many Best Buys , Circuit City's and so on can say that they move 600-800 radios per year? How many people do you think just pop into those places to ask a question about XM compared to the the amount of people walking through the malls and seeing the XM logo and stoping and asking questions about the radios, service or just to say how much they enjoy their service and how many employees at that type of location are as knowledgeable about the products and programming as the Kiosks employees were? Do you think you can walk into Best Buy and have an employee trouble shoot a radio problem or call listener care to straighten out a billing issue like a kiosk employee would? I think now more than ever the kiosks need to be open.
I think that XM will see a bigger loss in sales than they thought as the people that were shopping for info at the mall not always purchased at the mall so there will be a decline of sales at the big box stores as well.
They should REVIVE retail a bit! I remember when you would go into Radio Shack and see all the latest stuff nicely lined up with a full lineup of accessories. Back in Christmas 2006, even WalMart was relatively well stock. I think Sirius did well in standardizing the docks and boombox, but somebody should start checking out the stores today!
Everything is messed up, the inventories are ANCIENT. You might get a two year old Starmate car kit and a universal home dock and, what's this? A set of XM Inno earphones? Over in XM you'll see a similar mashup and a Sirius car adapter! Get some reps out there to clean shit up and mark stuff as outdated. At Walmart, you see stuff kicked around so roughly that nobody is going to buy a unit.
It's this simple. TWO MODELS: one plug and play, one portable. They should even share the same docks. Maybe you put a home/HIFI sort of unit in home stereos and a car unit in automatoive, but put up a small but nice display in each location explaining what else is available in the store.
They should REVIVE retail a bit! I remember when you would go into Radio Shack and see all the latest stuff nicely lined up with a full lineup of accessories. Back in Christmas 2006, even WalMart was relatively well stock. I think Sirius did well in standardizing the docks and boombox, but somebody should start checking out the stores today!
Everything is messed up, the inventories are ANCIENT. You might get a two year old Starmate car kit and a universal home dock and, what's this? A set of XM Inno earphones? Over in XM you'll see a similar mashup and a Sirius car adapter! Get some reps out there to clean shit up and mark stuff as outdated. At Walmart, you see stuff kicked around so roughly that nobody is going to buy a unit.
It's this simple. TWO MODELS: one plug and play, one portable. They should even share the same docks. Maybe you put a home/HIFI sort of unit in home stereos and a car unit in automatoive, but put up a small but nice display in each location explaining what else is available in the store.
I can't imagine how expensive this program was for XM. However, how many eyes and more importantly ears did they get to impress at these locations? Maybe a merger is about to happen and these things will compete with the Radio Shack stores in the malls that sell "Brand S."
I live in Woodbridge, VA and commute to DC. I am an investor - if you don't count my losses - in XM. I purchased my Roady2 at the Tysons Corner location because these were the only people that could actually tell me anything about the prooduct and service.
I haven't been to the location in some period of time and only saw about the closures while checking on the status of the merger.
This doesn't sound like a sound move (pardon the pun) by XM unless a merger is imminent.
The kiosk program was squashed by poor management and high operating costs. I worked on and off in the DC kiosk program for 2 years, every day wondering how they could stay open. When they first launched, the kiosks did an unbelievable business. However, by the time I got there, sales declined steadily, to the point where keeping the kiosks open was absurd.
Having said that, they were a great customer service location. I fixed radios, refreshed radios, called customer care, activated radios, and sold a ton. I feel like my most important service to customers was explaining how the service worked and why it was cool and what radios people should buy. I read a post the other day about someone saying how XM should invest in infomercials. I couldn't agree more. If people know how something works they are going to be much more comfortable purchasing the product. Also, they need to just give these radios away with contract agreements. When I would tell people they could buy a radio for $20, their eyes would light up. Imagine how many people would buy if they were "free"...
Kiosk Program Cost 3 Mil a year
What is the importance of pet medication to your pet dog (or pet cat for that matter) health? Don’ t animals have the ability to self- heal? Actually this is the thinking of many pet owners, the same reason why many of them tend to neglect their pet’ s health– missing out on the animals’ need for pet vitamins and medicine.
Visitors to New York City really need a New Yorker to show them around town. Do you think that will happen in New York? New Yorkers have got a reputation for being rude, so they answer is probably, most definetely NO. Unless you're related to them, and even then it's a long shot.... The fact is New Yorkers are really busy people who are all walking somewhere, in the City that never sleeps.
Having botox done is all the rage these days. A lot of testing has been done to see whether it is harmful. All the scientists agreed it is not in the least harmful.
I'd simply like to know where to go in the DC area now that the kiosks are closed to speak to someone with real knowledge about XM products, new products scheduled for release or in development, and capable of doing some effective trouble-shooting. I've been to three Best Buys and a Circuit City and while all representatives with whom I spoke were attentive and concerned, no one at either store was particulary well-versed or able to address my issues about my radio's failings of late (without requiring that I purchase new equipment.) I tend to agree with the sentiment that customer assistance, education of representatives or promoting vendors, better promotion of the products and service, and standardization of equipment compatibility is badly needed to ensure XM customer loyality and patience.