Feels like we're dying
I currently work at Maplin Electronics. I really don't believe Maplin will last much longer. They've stopped all hiring of staff, stopped all overtime, cancelled the works Christmas party, and lots of management in my division are leaving.
They've been forcing unrealistic targets on stores for a few months now. Stores have been running on minimum staff, with Christmas coming up it's going to kill us.
It's a shame really, I've been shopping (for components mainly) at Maplin since I was a kid. Our store, is in my opinion one of the more knowledgeable stores I've been in. Met some great people, staff and customers alike.
I think the problem could have been prevented by just lowering the prices. Why relay price match? To bring customers in you need a decent price. You can not expect a customer looking at different prices to shop in the place that is more expensive.