TigerDirect Buying CompUSA Assets

Electronics marketer Systemax - owner of direct marketer TigerDirect - is buying the CompUSA brand, trademarks, and some of its retail locations.

Fans of old-school technology retailing may rejoice: the CompUSA brand may be changing, but it’s not going away. As word broke in late 2007 that the venerable computer retailer CompUSA would be closing its remaining retail stores and, essentially, holding a fire sale on anything left on the shelves, some technology enthusiasts rejoices (whoo hoo! Longer lines at Best Buy, Fry’s, and Circuit City!) but others lamented the loss of a well-known brand, where you could always go for a motherboard at two in the morning. And stop for some fries nearby.

Thanks to a deal with electronics retailer Systemax, CompUSA will not be vanishing altogether. The company—which also owns TigerDirect—has inked a deal to buy the CompUSA brand and trademark, along with picking up as many as sixteen selected CompUSA retail locations. (PDF) The companies expect the deal to close in the first quarter of 2008, with the total value of the transaction being around $30 million.

“We believe the value of the CompUSA brand remains very high,” said Systemax CEO Richard Leeds, in a statement. “The company has a long legacy of value pricing, service, and customer loyalty among consumers nationwide. We view this acquisition as a strong complementary business to our TigerDirect operation.”

TigerDirect currently operates eleven retail locations in Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, and Ontario; adding up to sixteen CompUSA locations will be part of TigerDirect’s planned retail expansion in Florida, Texas, and Puerto Rico.

Until the acquisition is complete, CompUSA’s online and retail operations will continue under CompUSA’s existing structure. After the acquisition, Systemax plans to roll out an improved CompUSA site with advanced searching and improved content.