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The same thing happened to Radioshack[0] in North America. Then it became The Source[1] in Canada.

You can still get some parts at The Source these days, but not all of them, and not nearly as expansive a selection.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RadioShack

[1] https://www.thesource.ca/



If you can wait for 2 days, then you can use Digikey. It is the best thing we have in America for parts. That and Mouser.


Yes! Well acquainted! They were the go-to wholesalers when I was in film/tv. It’s just not the same as wandering into the shop and getting to know people there. Especially for personal interest/development or hobby projects.


To be clear, Radioshack and Circuit City were two distinct companies in the US. From a cursory look at Wikipedia, Circuit City was liquidated in 2009 (and later revived), and Radioshack is still operating stores.


Yeah—that Wikipedia link goes into the more complex history.

I just remember the RadioShack near my hometown that was full of walls of components. Now you're lucky to find a blank F-connector at The Source in the largest city in the country. Sentimentality got to me.

That said—for other Torontonians, or visitors, there's an awesome (edit: AWESOME) shop on College St between Spadina and Bathurst called Creatron: https://www.creatroninc.com/ (and surprisingly don't discount Long and McQuade [repair shop, Bloor St] for good quality pots and switches, albeit at a markup).


Radioshack is still around, but has scaled back extremely.

From thousands of operating stores to 500. Had a few in our area all close, so instead of 2-3 miles, now requires 20 miles to get to one. Effectively to some towns/cities it feels like Radioshack is no more because of such a drastic hit to their footprint.




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