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4D4M

macrumors regular
Aug 24, 2005
244
0
Broken Britain
It's crazy how disrespectful some people on this forum are! The guy simply wasn't the right fit for Apple, he is by no means a "clown" or "trash".

I agree. He took on Dixons Group when it was at a low point, and if anything it improved during his brief 3 year period there. Before that he was head of the online branch of Tesco, one of the UK's most successful retailers. Hardly clown territory.

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I suspect that most people being 'disrespectful' have had the misfortunate to shop in the chain (Dixons / Currys / PC World) that he used to work for.

It was and still is a horrible, frustrating, over priced experience.

I don't think there was a single sane person in the UK who thought that his hiring was sensible or appropriate.

My shopping experiences there in recent years have been thoroughly pleasant. I wasn't buying exciting stuff (vacuum cleaner, dishwasher etc) but the staff seemed friendly and knowledgeable, and prices were roughly in line with elsewhere (or I wouldn't have gone there).

But yeah, his experience wasn't a fit for Apple.
 

Brian Y

macrumors 68040
Oct 21, 2012
3,776
1,064
2 words: Goodbye Monsoon.

He worked at PC World because his management style suits pushing extended warranties, etc. You can't do that at a clothes retailer.

In 6 months time, you'll buy a blouse in monsoon and you'll have to remove your blouse's warranty, anti-stain protection and backup blouse plan when you get to the till.
 

Reason077

macrumors 68040
Aug 14, 2007
3,588
3,532
I suspect that most people being 'disrespectful' have had the misfortunate to shop in the chain (Dixons / Currys / PC World) that he used to work for.

It was and still is a horrible, frustrating, over priced experience.

That said, the Dixons group is today pretty much the only traditional UK technology retail chain left standing. Their competition (Best Buy, Comet, etc) have all collapsed and shut down at this point. Dixons, however, is not only still in business but is quite profitable.

So they must have been doing something right?
 

rmwebs

macrumors 68040
Apr 6, 2007
3,140
0
It's crazy how disrespectful some people on this forum are!
The guy simply wasn't the right fit for Apple, he is by no means a "clown" or "trash".

Might want to look up his working history before making such a statement. He's a typical manager, who only cares about making sure the graph shows profits up and expenses down - anything else doesn't matter to him.
 

rmwebs

macrumors 68040
Apr 6, 2007
3,140
0
That said, the Dixons group is today pretty much the only traditional UK technology retail chain left standing. Their competition (Best Buy, Comet, etc) have all collapsed and shut down at this point. Dixons, however, is not only still in business but is quite profitable.

So they must have been doing something right?

A lot of it seems to have been down to luck. Several times they have come close to bankruptcy, but every time it happens, one of their competitors has folded. Its not even something new. I remember when they nearly went bust back in the 90s and were only saved by the fact that 'Tempo' went bust, as did Tandy, Tiny.

Even the music chains such as Our Price, Virgin, Zavvi, Woolworths and HMV benefitted them.

Then there's the more recent casualties

- Comet
- Best Buy
- Game

They are in a strong position now as the only high street electrics retailer, granted most of their stuff is overpriced and basically old crap, but 'dumb' customers still buy it.

They are far from safe though. In 2008, 2009 and 2011 they had losses.
 

All Taken

macrumors 6502a
Dec 28, 2009
780
1
UK
The guy could be making a smart move here. Reason being is with 'Republic' (UK fashion retailer) going into administration and likely restructuring going forward leaves 'Monsoon' in a fantastic position growth wise. All the man has to do is figure out a fast and effective push with new stores and the business presence alone will take that extra market share that 'Republic' will leave....

He seems to stay afloat - kinda feel sorry for the Monsoon employees having to deal with crap like 'fives' (See PC World staff training).

The negativity toward this guy is well entrenched because he never really stopped being a Store Manager (Budget vs Labour) and never filled his Executive shoes (Growth vs Profits). Armed with the mentality of a Manager on a store front he is accustomed to cutting labour where possible, this is why he is despised, read back about 8 months ago and you'll see Apple had a string of let-go part time staff. As an executive he should have thought bigger than a Manager and appreciated that his predecessors had succeeded in massive retail growth along side large profits without the need for reversing labour costs.

In layman's terms the guy isn't an executive and Tim Cook likely realised this a few months in to John's time with the company.
 

cjmillsnun

macrumors 68020
Aug 28, 2009
2,399
48
It's crazy how disrespectful some people on this forum are!
The guy simply wasn't the right fit for Apple, he is by no means a "clown" or "trash".

I take it you've never ever been to PC World, Currys or Dixons in the UK then. :rolleyes:
 

NutsNGum

macrumors 68030
Jul 30, 2010
2,856
367
Glasgow, Scotland
You assume they weren't already treated like ****. Most retail employees are.

Monsoon and Accessorize are a hotbed of passive-aggresivism.

It's fairly obvious any time you're in either of those places that the staff pretty much all hate each other. To be honest, Browett might end up being a blessing in disguise by sacking everyone that works there.
 

iMikeT

macrumors 68020
Jul 8, 2006
2,304
1
California
Browett's moving around reminds me of the Catholic church shuffling around priests who did only more damage where ever they went to next.
 

RolyPolyBird

macrumors regular
Aug 13, 2010
208
0
Yeah the excess negativity surprised me too.

I would imagine most of the people being negative are Brits who are fed up with being ripped off and served poorly by the British retail industry. He is one of the prominent faces of that.

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Monsoon and Accessorize are a hotbed of passive-aggresivism.

It's fairly obvious any time you're in either of those places that the staff pretty much all hate each other. To be honest, Browett might end up being a blessing in disguise by sacking everyone that works there.

hahaha its not often I am in a place like that but any shop where the market is teenage girls and young women always seems to have that sort of horrible vibe.
 

iMikeT

macrumors 68020
Jul 8, 2006
2,304
1
California
I would imagine most of the people being negative are Brits who are fed up with being ripped off and served poorly by the British retail industry. He is one of the prominent faces of that.



Do keep in mind that Browett did try to implement changes at Apple retail stores here in the USA, it was not popular among the employees and customers who were aware of the changes.
 

Eriden

macrumors regular
Sep 5, 2006
167
15
The man is a cost-cutter, and will undoubtedly help the bottom line at whichever company employs him. The problem is that Apple customers demand better customer service, and have gotten used to a more generous return and repair policy over the last decade.

When Browett came in, the employees didn't like it because his mindset was "fewer employees, fewer hours." The return and repair policy also changed sharply, and you could tell that the geniuses were being told to find any reason they could to reject a return or repair.

Apple got a vocal outcry from employees and customers. Apple valued its brand image more than the small boost to the bottom line that Browett brought, so he was sacked.
 

Macist

macrumors 6502a
Mar 13, 2009
783
458
I have a friend who was a fairly big-shot regional manager for a major international brand. After being made redundant when that company got into trouble she could barely get a job pushing paperclips around a desk, her experience managing a huge team and budget seemingly worth nothing.

So how can the guys at what you might call the next tier up in the food chain - the major head office execs - hop from one top job to the next regardless of track record? Is it some sort of special mason-like club?
 

charlieegan3

macrumors 68020
Feb 16, 2012
2,394
17
U.K
I would imagine most of the people being negative are Brits who are fed up with being ripped off and served poorly by the British retail industry. He is one of the prominent faces of that.

I would count myself a brit and I think if you're daft enough to shop in dixons then that's your fault, not this guys...

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Really? You can argue whether it is justified or not but every MacRumours story with him mentioned has had comments dripping in negativity.

I guess it's rarely this focussed on a single individual, or with so little grounding.
 

alexgowers

macrumors 65816
Jun 3, 2012
1,338
892
These guys high in upper worlds of companies are creeps and snake oil salesmen. They serve no purpose other than to make your company more profitable but definatley worse in some way. There is a reason companies are the way they are before these guys arrive.

Monsoon and Accessorize aren't known for good service or a pleasant customer experience either so he will probably be a good fit.

Apple knows how it should run and doesn't need a middle man, if Tim Cook can do this guys role on the side then you really don't need anyone, even part time to be in this kind of role!

These middle men are like politicians that promise things, deliver on maybe one thing and ignore the rest claiming it's out of their control, get fired for someone else promising it all and take that hollow success to another company as proof they can offer more.

These guys are the scum bag leeches that can ruin an entire company with their actions yet are never held to account.
 

atrevers

macrumors regular
May 24, 2007
128
27
UK
I would count myself a brit and I think if you're daft enough to shop in dixons then that's your fault, not this guys...

Brit, me too. Daft, not me - although I do shop in Dixons owned outlets, most notable recent purchase being a 2011 Mac Mini 5,1 for £305 a few weeks ago. Granted, it's the old model and has flaws (no USB3), but it was in a sealed box (not ex display or pre owned) and I can live with its flaws at that price. My point is, as an informed shopper you buy where you can get the best deal.

Browett comes from a background where cutting costs leads to higher margins / reduced overheads at point of sale, which can then lead to the ability to market attractive deals. It worked and still works for Dixons as they've weathered the storm to the point where they and John Lewis are 'last men standing' as high street electrical retailers. That wasn't the greatest fit for Apple - their 'retail' arm is more about creating an environment where their products are portrayed as being reassuringly expensive, with value added services such as the Genius Bar serving to reinforce the idea that you're getting what you pay for. John Browett didn't fit into that - doesn't make him bad at what he does, it's just that what he does isn't what Apple needed.

Phew.
 
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