Radio Shack woes? I may be able to shed some light on it.

Radio Shack’s financial performance continues to deteriorate, with sales down 14% and profits down 47%, both in the most recent quarter.

I think I found the problem.

We have a cordless phone in our house, which seemed to stop working all of a sudden. I assumed the rechargeable battery had run its course, and purchased a replacement for the battery at our local Radio Shack outlet — for $19.00.

With the new battery installed, the phone still did not work, so I stopped by Wal-Mart and purchased a replacement phone (exact same model) for $14 — with a new battery included! The new phone works fine, and I have the Radio Shack replacement battery in hand.

This experience represents only one data point, but it is enough to steer me away from Radio Shack forever. If they can’t deliver a battery to me at anything close to a competitive price, I will assume that this applies to all of their products.

It sounds like other consumers have drawn the same conclusion.