Hot Topic

[Godslayer Jillian]

Hot Topic will try to sell anything because they know people will buy it. But they're still not gothic.

[Kinflame]

Hey. They sell NOFX stuff. And NOFX don't suck. They also sell Rancid stuff, though I'm starting to dislike Rancid after listening too much...

Anyway, as I'm sure you can all tell Hot Topic is pretty much my FAVORITE STORE IN THE WORLD! Because you should always let huge corporations tell you how to run your subculture. After all conformism defines cool!

[Godslayer Jillian]

Heh, I love Kinflame's sarcasm.

By the way, I'm feeling bitchy today, so...

Have you seen the irony in the T-shirt logo of your avatar?
It says D.I.Y. or Fuck Off, right? But that's a T-shirt you bought. You didn't do it yourself

[bjork_freak]

Originally Posted by Kinflame

Hey. They sell NOFX stuff. And NOFX don't suck. They also sell Rancid stuff, though I'm starting to dislike Rancid after listening too much...

Anyway, as I'm sure you can all tell Hot Topic is pretty much my FAVORITE STORE IN THE WORLD! Because you should always let huge corporations tell you how to run your subculture. After all conformism defines cool!

Just a question...where did you get the impression that Hot Topic is trying to tell people how to run their subculture?

I just see Hot Topic as a store. A store that sells things. If you don't like it, fine...don't shop there. But people shouldn't be criticized for shopping there. I admit, I buy incense from Hot Topic (considering it's the only place in town that sells Nag Champa) and once in awhile I buy gifts there for some of my friends. Do I consider myself a hardcore goth because I shop there? No. I'm far from being goth.

Don't get me the wrong way, this is just my opinion.

[Cicero]

Since I'll be in the U.S. in about a month I'll admit I do plan on going to Hot Topic. Not necessarily to buy anything - though if I see something I like at a reasonable price I won't stop myself - but I really want to see what all the fuss is about! Plus I recently bought a shirt off eBay that came with a HT tag on it, and I rather like the shirt, so perhaps I'll find Hot Topic to be not-so-terrible after all.

However I'm still keeping the quality warnings I've heard in mind. I wouldn't splash out on anything extravagant if it's going to turn to shreds after wearing it once.

[bjork_freak]

Three of my friends' closet is basically made up of only Hot Topic clothing. They are never seen without at least one piece of Hot Topic clothing. I have never seen a fray or anything falling apart on them...

[BADSEED]

Guess what my friends they are taking a heavy nosedive and soon (Hot Topic that is), most likely go out of buisiness within a few years. It's public knowledge. The Gap is another one.

[maggot]

Woah, there. HT is dying?! Oh noez! I've gotssta get me more Tripp pants!


Are they really going out? Well if they have out of business sales, myabe I can get some cool apparel(sp?) for cheap.

[BADSEED]

Originally Posted by Xnguela

I'd be interested in hearing your reasoning... I agree completely, though. Their current business strategy is weak and fragile.

I read it in one of those buisiness rags, Xng!
It's for real!

[Sobeh]

Rather than just rattle on, I did some looking:

"Earnings Roundup: Hot Topic Inc. reported second-quarter net income of $893,000, compared with $4.5 million for the like period a year earlier." <source>

"Shares of the retailer have fallen 51 percent since late January, after doubling last year. The stock is now trending below $20, and a handful of analysts have upgraded shares of the City of Industry-based retailer on the belief it could stage a rebound.

"I don't expect you're going to see a huge lift in the shares in July, but they could come back in August," said Elizabeth Pierce, a retail analyst at Sanders Morris Harris in Los Angeles. "They have a very flexible operating model and limited competition." " <source>

From that same page:

" Even though Hot Topic has churned out four consecutive quarters of double-digit earnings increases, it ran aground in March, when executives forecast slower same-store sales growth, a key indicator of retail performance. Several analysts downgraded the stock, citing its high valuation at around $34 a share. Since then, the stock has fallen by more than 40 percent."

---

I, for one, suspect that they are going to have to find a way to capitalize on their niche market, and they aren't doing it. With long-term plans like:

"It (Hot Topic) expects to make a big splash for the back-to-school season with denim, which could turn out to be either a dicey proposition or a major hit."

...I doubt they can. Denim? Jeans'n'Tees Goths like myself might dig it, but I don't really think that's capitalizing on their potential. I guess we'll see.

[angel_dark_demon_bright]

Originally Posted by BADSEED

Guess what my friends they are taking a heavy nosedive and soon (Hot Topic that is), most likely go out of buisiness within a few years. It's public knowledge. The Gap is another one.

Not Hot Topic! If they close where will I get to waste my money on cheap, useless stuff? How will i ever be able to spend $500 bucks on three and a half outfits!?! NOOOOO!!!!! *weeps*

Oh well. Maybe the reason they would go out of business is because they're trying to sell extremly expensive goods to a target group that does not have alot of money to spend on such clothes. If they could find a way to make it not so expensive Im sure they would make much more in profits.

[AbelTheLiar]

Hmm... damn. Now I'll have to subsribe to Cure magazine... oh... wait... that would actually be cheaper as a year comes to $10 an issue instead of the $15 I pay now. But in their defense, I did manage to find a Dir En Grey cd there.

[bjork_freak]

Man, your avatar is awesome. I have heard a few songs from Malice Mizer and I thought their music was very entertaining.

[Draconysius]

Originally Posted by Xnguela

While that makes sense, I'm pretty sure they're going out of business because they only thought about the short term. They're a publicly traded company, and their way of keeping their stock high is to open around 3 new stores every month. That way, after factoring in the profits of newly open stores (which are obviously higher because of novelty and other factors) their numbers appear unrealistically high, creating the illusion that they're a profitable business.

The problem, however, is that this is a very temporary profit. And it's not going to work forever. That's what I meant when I said that their business strategy is weak and fragile. They've found a temporary fix to a permanent problem, and for Hot Topic it's easy to see that the end is near.

Their poor marketing strategies, of course, only add to the problem.

Goddamn Hot Topic.

That is an interesting viewpoint, Xnguela. I have indeed spotted many anew Snot Topics lately, even within the mall nearestby myself that couldn't contain the stores it had already. I'm not so certain about the chain's approaching demise, but if it happened, I would certainly be much happier.

The Hot Topics attract all types of poseur; those that hide emotion, those that idiosynchronize, those that hypocritically shun conformity, etc.
Kids these days...

[Kinflame]

Ah. I see you've never been to the Hot Topic of Bethesdan Montgomery Mall.

Since I suck at the quoety things, here. Enjoy the improvisation quote marks.
__________________________________________________ _________
bjork_freak:

Just a question...where did you get the impression that Hot Topic is trying to tell people how to run their subculture?

I just see Hot Topic as a store. A store that sells things.
__________________________________________________ _________

Alright. About a month ago I visited my local Hot Topic, after seeing a cool looking Misfits hoodie and deciding to stop in for a sec. As I walked past the cash register I noticed a stand of handbooks, diaries, whatver the proper term is nect to said cash register. The sign (written in uber-hardcore blood writing of course) read pretty exactly 'Now you can pour out your anguished thoughts into this diary as the pages will absorb the black blood of your thoughts.'. After staring for a second and recieving a strong feeling of 'WTF' I decided to keep going. Deeper into the black abyss, after looking at the hoodie and deciding to prod further, I noticed a helper person standing by. After she literally curled her lip at me I for some reason decided to say 'hello'. She looked at me for like ten seconds, then asked me if the hoels in my jacket were real, to which I replied 'Yeah'. My eloquent reply cuased her to give a sort of whinegasm, and wordlessly she turned and walked away. I then left feeling pissed. I really get the feeling that they take themselves seriously and view anything else as fake goth or fake punk, and it just pisses me off. Ehnyway.

[maggot]

I call it Yuppigoth, that Hot Topic style, I do. I do it for the sole reason that you need to be a Yuppie to be able to pay for it all

I think the people at my hot topic are more sane. Whenever I go in, they tend to be pleasant and helpful, not to mention conversation and complimentary.

Last time I ventured in, we had a conversation about SOAD. It was nice.

[bjork_freak]

Originally Posted by Kinflame

Ah. I see you've never been to the Hot Topic of Bethesdan Montgomery Mall.

Since I suck at the quoety things, here. Enjoy the improvisation quote marks.
__________________________________________________ _________
bjork_freak:

Just a question...where did you get the impression that Hot Topic is trying to tell people how to run their subculture?

I just see Hot Topic as a store. A store that sells things.
__________________________________________________ _________

Alright. About a month ago I visited my local Hot Topic, after seeing a cool looking Misfits hoodie and deciding to stop in for a sec. As I walked past the cash register I noticed a stand of handbooks, diaries, whatver the proper term is nect to said cash register. The sign (written in uber-hardcore blood writing of course) read pretty exactly 'Now you can pour out your anguished thoughts into this diary as the pages will absorb the black blood of your thoughts.'. After staring for a second and recieving a strong feeling of 'WTF' I decided to keep going. Deeper into the black abyss, after looking at the hoodie and deciding to prod further, I noticed a helper person standing by. After she literally curled her lip at me I for some reason decided to say 'hello'. She looked at me for like ten seconds, then asked me if the hoels in my jacket were real, to which I replied 'Yeah'. My eloquent reply cuased her to give a sort of whinegasm, and wordlessly she turned and walked away. I then left feeling pissed. I really get the feeling that they take themselves seriously and view anything else as fake goth or fake punk, and it just pisses me off. Ehnyway.

Sounds to me like it was a bitchy clerk who was trying to run the subculture. But don't worry, I understand what you're getting at.

[end.of.eternity]

I know nothing about this Hot Topic so I'm a real outsider...

But reading these it seems I haven't missed much.

Maybe I'll be able to deal with it-

[Demonista_Ravenesque]

I went into the Australian version of Hot Topic today, 'Dangerfield'.

There wasn't much to praise for but there was a shirt that had upon it 'PUNK IS NOT DEAD'.

Of course, it was in the same general area as the Greenday shirts so it made me raise an eyebrow.

All that eyebrow raising made me thirsty so I headed off to the closest Easy Way to buy my Asian tea with pearls.

I know, this post didn't contribute anything, but I did mention Hot Topic at least once.

[Virulent Dryad]

I never really figured out what Hot Topic is. From what I've interpreted it's a string of planets which is inhabited by philistines who have a bad sense of fashion. Who knows...

[Kinflame]

Man. Contributing is overrated anyway.

Do they sell NINETY NINE RED BALLOONS AT HOT TOPIC? DDDOOOO THHHEEEYYY!!!!!

[BADSEED]

Sorry for not posting specifics but I just don't care enough to go into it, I just thought it was something a lot of people would like to hear.

[BADSEED]

Originally Posted by Xnguela

Oh, god, when will that rumor die?

There are like 5 pages of my arguing with some twat about this in this very thread. Why is everyone so ready to believe this without doing any research of their own?

I'm not yelling at you, Draco. Just kind of a recurring theme that confuses the hell out of me.

Really, who really gives a flying fuck, I can't believe how long this went on, sorry I even mentioned it in the first place Xng. Although seeing someone being called a twat never gets old.

[angel_dark_demon_bright]

Originally Posted by Xnguela

While that makes sense, I'm pretty sure they're going out of business because they only thought about the short term. They're a publicly traded company, and their way of keeping their stock high is to open around 3 new stores every month. That way, after factoring in the profits of newly open stores (which are obviously higher because of novelty and other factors) their numbers appear unrealistically high, creating the illusion that they're a profitable business.

The problem, however, is that this is a very temporary profit. And it's not going to work forever. That's what I meant when I said that their business strategy is weak and fragile. They've found a temporary fix to a permanent problem, and for Hot Topic it's easy to see that the end is near.

Their poor marketing strategies, of course, only add to the problem.

Goddamn Hot Topic.

Agreed. The only people who can largely afford to go there are the people who normally would not go there. (i.e. older age groups. people in their mid-twenties through thirties. ones who have higher paying jobs.) If they could lower their general items cost 50-60% or so they could turn a higher profit. As it is a pair of their brand jeans cost about $30 or $35. Often you can get the same kind of jeans at other stores in the same mall for $20 or so.

[Sanctus Dei]

Originally Posted by angel_dark_demon_bright

Agreed. The only people who can largely afford to go there are the people who normally would not go there. (i.e. older age groups. people in their mid-twenties through thirties. ones who have higher paying jobs.) If they could lower their general items cost 50-60% or so they could turn a higher profit. As it is a pair of their brand jeans cost about $30 or $35. Often you can get the same kind of jeans at other stores in the same mall for $20 or so.

Your statement is horribly incorrect. Hot Topic is a frequently shopped store, although the buzz will remain short term, it is currently visited by all walks of life young to old (I've see people in their fourties at a Topic). In MN anyway most of them are placed near higher income neighborhoods (Bloomington, Minnetonka and Maple Grove for the Minnesota literate) Every one of those facilities are always busy and contain more well off preppy types then 'gawth' folks... interesting huh?