Many are scared of malware.
And Playboy isnt porn and honestly I do read it for the articles… and the cartoons.
Not as far as I know, at least commonly and I am a expert here. But jewelry stores, music stores and oddly Mexican Clothing stores (Jeans, Cowboy wear) are sometimes a front for money laundering.
Mattress stores work on a very high mark-up and scamming the gullible.
It’s not the bears themselves. They are like Barbie. It’s the clothing and accessories you can buy for your little plush animal. Honestly I have seen grown mature women break down into cooing at that crap.
Bob Evens.
I don’t know anyone who eats there. I know it’s established as more of a “down home” style cheap diner/restaurant that may appeal more to seniors or southerners, what have you… yet… It felt like their customer base was on their way out 15 years ago.
Southerners? You know Bob Evans, as in the guy who was literally named Bob Evans was an Ohio farmer and the restaurant chain is headquartered in Ohio, started in Ohio, and has more restaurants in Ohio than any other state.
Ohio is pretty not-southern. Further, Bob Evans really only exists in significant numbers in the more northerly Southern states.
Now, you are right they seem to appeal to an older crowd, for reasons I can’t quite pinpoint. But I don’t really think it is generational, I’m not a huge fan of Bob Evans but I think they have decent food for what it is. They are really very similar to IHOP with slightly less emphasis on breakfast (and I think they are trying to be less of a breakfast place more and more, but every Bob Evans I’ve ever been in has always been the most packed at breakfast.) But yeah, I probably went into my first Bob Evans in the 80s and it was mostly old people, mid-60s to 80s, and it’s been that way for 30 years. Now, obviously the people that age I saw back in '88 aren’t the same ones kicking around at 2012…so something appears to happen from age 65-85 to Midwestern people that makes them naturally gravitate to Bob Evans.
The Big Boy chains have different names depending on where they are: in Indiana they are Azar’s Big Boy (at least in Northeast Indiana) and in Ohio they are Frisch’s Big Boy.
Yep, for the longest time, here in Michigan, it was Elias Bros. Big Boy restaurants. They were headquartered in Warren, MI where I lived for 10 years, but went bankrupt in 2000. They were bought out since then, but I’ve eaten there maybe 3 times since 2000.
Anyway, RE: Bob Evens. I’ll grant you it’s a mid-western franchise (although, I like to call the Great Lakes cluster of states “mid-eastern”), but I should’ve used the adjective “rural” over “southern.” My bad.
Podunk?
With regard to Denny’s, I think its survival is due to a number of reasons.
First of all, they’re always open, and in smaller cities and towns, are often the only opportunity in town for 24/7/365 dining. Heck, I once had a meal at Denny’s on Christmas Day–every other place in town, bar none, was closed. (Yep, I checked–I was hungry!)
Secondly, they’re consistent. Big Macs are the same around the world, and Denny’s offerings are no different; indeed, a friend once called Denny’s “the McDonald’s of sit-down table-service restaurants.” I think he’s right; I’ve eaten at Denny’s at various locations in the US and Canada, and when I order an item I’ve enjoyed previously at another location, it is exactly the same as I remember from elsewhere. Nice when you don’t feel like experimenting, and all you want is something to eat.
Nextly, the menu does change. I can remember a few things that are no longer on their menu (meatloaf, for example), but I’m pleased to see a few new things (the bacon-lover’s BLT). They also have seasonal offerings. Granted, the menu may seem a little slow in changing, but it does change.
Overall, and let’s face it, Denny’s is diner food; good old American truck stop diner food. It will never win any Michelin stars, it will never be reviewed in foodie publications, and its recipes will never appear on popular TV cooking shows. But it will survive for the same reasons that McDonald’s will: availability, consistency, and price. As one who has pulled into unfamiliar cities and towns at weird hours of the day and night, Denny’s is a place where I know I won’t get fine dining, but what I will get will be satisfying at any time of day, and I won’t be surprised at the bill.
I can! They offer a menu for patrons 55 and older, with somewhat smaller portions but lower prices.
I’ve never eaten at a Bob Evans restaurant, but I do love their Roll sausage. It’s expensive so I only buy it when it’s on sale. They don’t use sugar anything in it and it’s much tastier to me than other sausages.
My contribution to the OP is classmates.com. Really, wtf? How do they stick around what with Facebook free? (This Onion piece was funny to me) I’ve had an account there since it started but I refuse to pay for their “Gold” membership or whatever it’s called nowadays just to see who signed my Guestbook, which I figure no real person did (I had no friends in high school, all my friends were older) and it’s just an ad from Classmates itself or something. If they’d give me a name with their “Someone signed your Guestbook!” emails so I could judge if it’s legit or not, I might consider giving them money. Maybe.
Chrysler, the zombie of automakers.
They just moved into what used to be a Borders next to my Dr.'s office. Space was empty for MONTHS!
I have no issue with Denny’s food, but I gave up on them years ago because of consistently crappy service. When you place an order, and then don’t get your food, or a refill on your water, or in fact even see your server for 20 minutes or more, something is very wrong with that restaurant. And when this happens three different times at three different locations, something is very wrong with the chain.
Burlington Coat Factory. They have a store in the plaza behind a local mall. The plaza nobody ever thinks about, let alone shops in. Right next door to the Guitar Center.
I got an a suit there and an overcoat that everyone raves about for $100 (each). It was amazing how many people were in there when I went in because like you said the parking lot didn’t ever seem that full. And it does still seem like a marginal business considering the large footprint of the store, but there weren’t an absolutely small number of people in it, just small for its size.
I’ll vote for OLD NAVY-I never see anybody in there. The last time I went, it was to buy a dog collar-they were out of them.
Huh. The single time I ever went in, I was looking specifically for a coat. I walked in, saw a display of kitchen stuff, some outdoor furniture, bird feeders, etc. I turned around and left.
Sew & Vac stores. In our increasingly disposable economy, most people just go to WalMart if their Singer or Hoover breaks down.
I can’t believe nobody has mentioned Radio Shack yet!
Little mom-n-pop computer stores that are only open 9 - 5 when most people are at work, and from 12-4 on Saturdays; and who charge like $60-$80/hr to diagnose & repair. I can’t even begin to identify who their market is, let alone how it can be big enough to provide sufficient income to keep the lights on. If my 3 year old PC breaks down I make a choice: pay $250 to diagnose and maybe repair my machine so I can have my 3 year old technology back, or spring for $500 and get a new magic box with ALL new parts.