For the longest time, through the 1980s, the electronics industry represented an industry to be in. Virtually every town in the developed world, from Europe to North America, to Australia used to have an electronics store that sold all types of electronic components. From major chains like Radio Shack to small mom and pop stores, it used to be a pretty safe market to be in. However, much of this has changed in recent decades, now that the production of finished electronic products has become so inexpensive that few people feel the need to do their own electronics work.
Further, the rise of the Internet, Internet business, and reliable global shipping has also utterly redefined the industry. The old way of buying components off the shelf or having them specifically ordered by your local retailer is actually gone today. Instead, anyone in need of any sort of electronic component can quickly and easily find it online and have it shipped directly to their home. The old brick and mortar businesses really can not compete at all since few physical stores can actually maintain the stock and selection that an online business can. The Internet has almost single-handedly destroyed the idea of the offline electronic component retailer.
The result has been that most companies that once specialized in selling electronic components have now changed their business model and frequently emphasize selling finished electronic goods as opposed to separate parts, although they may still offer the service of ordering components for customers upon request. The offline retailers of electronic components that have lived up to now are now in a desperate race to try to keep up with changing trends, so it is no longer the safe and popular industry it once was. It would seem, on the surface that the days of the offline retail seller of electronic components are now numbered.
