Bass Pro buys Sportsman's Warehouse

[MrPrena]

When the market is at their highs, many companies do dumb M&A. Funniest one was Compaq-HP deal and AOL-Time Warners.

[Rucker61]

When the market is at their highs, many companies do dumb M&A. Funniest one was Compaq-HP deal and AOL-Time Warners.

The Compaq-HP mergers seems to have worked out well enough.

[MrPrena]

The Compaq-HP mergers seems to have worked out well enough.

Decades later after many diversification and playing around agilent, yes it has.

However, carly's one of biggest failure is still seen as Compaq merger.

[Rucker61]

Decades later after many diversification and playing around agilent, yes it has.

However, carly's one of biggest failure is still seen as Compaq merger.

Did Carly have any successes?

[MrPrena]

Did Carly have any successes?

One.
She kept her job very long at hwp/hpq relative to her performance.

[Aloha_Shooter]

Decades later after many diversification and playing around agilent, yes it has.

However, carly's one of biggest failure is still seen as Compaq merger.

Did Carly have any successes?

I had owned a small amount of HPQ stock around that time period. While I appreciated some of Carly's statements in later years when she ran for political office, she was an unmitigated disaster as CEO of HPQ back in the day and I had to laugh whenever she pointed to her background as a businesswoman. Her time as CEO reminded me of the statement by the man elected by the "mutineers" of the 20th Maine when he addressed COL Joshua Chamberlain and described the Union Army's generals as "unable to pour pee from a boot with the instructions written on the heel."

Merging HP with CPQ was utter stupidity.

[O2HeN2]

Funniest one was Compaq-HP deal...

Was there, did that. Worked out well for my group (Compaq ne Digital). They canned the HP product our product was up against and merged the groups.

...and then we had to put up with seething hatred and non-cooperation for years from the HP employees whose product was replaced by ours.

Management took the approach of "It'll sort itself out" and it did, like 2 to 3 years later. They could have fixed it in months if they had the fortitude to actually manage the groups.

O2

[MrPrena]

Was there, did that. Worked out well for my group (Compaq ne Digital). They canned the HP product our product was up against and merged the groups.

...and then we had to put up with seething hatred and non-cooperation for years from the HP employees whose product was replaced by ours.

Management took the approach of "It'll sort itself out" and it did, like 2 to 3 years later. They could have fixed it in months if they had the fortitude to actually manage the groups.

O2

Oh yeah. I remember ibank were praising Michael Capella for that merger. Smaller companies usually benefits in mergers (of course depending on deal structures and etc).

[Martinjmpr]

I've never been much of a "business guy" but I thought the whole reason SW went through their bankruptcy or near bankruptcy in 2010 - 11 (I think that's when it was) was because they grew too fast and spread themselves too thin. And back then, we didn't even have Cabela's yet (I think the Cabelas stores in the Metro area opened around 2015 or so.)

So now, with BPS owning not only their own BPS store, they own the two Cabelas stores in the metro area, and soon will own the, what, 3 or 4 SW locations? So that's one company with either 6 or 7 locations just in the Denver area alone.

What is the value, to the company, in having that many locations? Seems like a lot of overhead to have that many store that are all relatively close to each other.

Didn't Gander Mountain close their retail stores because they decided they couldn't compete in the "big box sporting goods store" area?

Cabela's has a "brand identity" seeing as how it's been around since 1961, and I suppose you could say the same about BPS but SW really doesn't - as I said above, their gimmick was always low prices so once their prices go up to BPS and Cabela's levels, there's really no gimmick at all.

Would not surprise me a bit to see SW closed for good after this. To be honest, I'm surprised they even came back from their earlier bankruptcy or reorganization or whatever it was.

[KS63]

The SW in Parker has always been great with customer service and their store is very well light and organized, unlike the other SW locations that are dark and gloomy. I’m not the type to browse the gun counter often, but when I pass by they always ask if I need help. I hope the employees who are currently at Parker stay through the transition as they are the ones giving the service, not Corporate.