RIP First Avenue

Ian Seyler · Mar 1st, 2005, 04:45 PM

I was wondering if they were going to be closing. I was in there about a month ago and noticed there was almost nothing in the store. Quite different from when I was in there over 2 years ago to buy my first Mac from them. It's sad to see them go.

-Ian

jfpoole · Mar 1st, 2005, 05:12 PM

I'm not surprised First Avenue is closing. They were in a really bizarre, out-of-the-way location, and the service was hit or miss; you could spend half an hour there before someone talked to you because they were locked in conversation with another customer.

Ah well.

simon · Mar 1st, 2005, 05:25 PM

I was a weekly First Avenue customer (I must have spent 1000's over the years) but I was only able to visit once in a blue moon since I moved up to Barrie 4 years ago. I was there a couple of months ago and I noticed that their usual well-stocked store was "lacking" (if that's the word). The store guys did a great job in revamping it over the years and it's sad to see it go.

Sorta explains why I haven't been able to get to their Buy-and-Sell trading post lately - that was another cool tool they offered ...

Macaholic · Mar 1st, 2005, 05:27 PM

I've not met him personally or beeen to the store yet, but maybe do give icnme.com a whirl. Wray the owner seems like a great guy.

http://www.icnme.com/contact.html

mactrombone · Mar 1st, 2005, 05:36 PM

I just called icnme.com and they do seem really nice. I will pursue that route a little and see what happens. Nice website and they were certainly helpful over the phone.

happ ymac · Mar 2nd, 2005, 11:22 AM

For what its worth--The IST department,Math & Computer ,room 1052 at the University of waterloo is a fully certified repair depot for all Apple products except IPOD's.

Chipper · Mar 2nd, 2005, 12:11 PM

NO-O-O-O-O-O!!!!! Say it's not so!!!

This is not good news for the Golden Triangle area! Apple needs a viable representative in the K-W area, known as the Technology Triangle, which is growing by leaps and bounds.

Unfortunately, I too have noticed the decreasing stock in the store over the last year and was concerned about the future of First Avenue. I really like the staff and will miss their smiling faces and greetings when I walk in. I shall miss their wonderful Saturday seminars.

In particular, I will miss John who has been a terrific supporter of the Waterloo Region Macintosh Users Group / WatRMUG over the last few years. He has given his own personal time on several occasions to host meetings in the store when new products have been introduced. Just last month, on Feb 10, John gave 30+ WatRMUG members and guests a terrific overview of iLife '05. I was looking forward to booking him for an overview of Tiger when it is released later this year.

What really bothers me is that the staff at First Avenue that I know have young families. I sincerely hope that they can find new jobs quickly. My heart goes out to them.

I will miss First Avenue.

Brenda

newsman · Mar 2nd, 2005, 01:57 PM

Canada Apple reseller to close by March 25, 2005.

Central Ontario based Apple reseller, First Avenue Information Systems http://www.firstavenue.com have disclosed the intention to close and cease operations on or before March 25, 2005.

The owners of First Avenue Information Systems, Waterloo, ON Canada, an Apple reseller and authorized service provider, have decided, after 20 years in business, not to continue.

No additional reasons for the closure have been published, and the website still shows business as usual but repeated calls to the reseller location and visits confirm the process of closure has begun. A small sign at the main register and talks with the remaining employees indicates that no new orders are being placed for equipment and no new items are being taken for repair. Orders are being cancelled and refunds credited to clients.

This will leave a gapping hole in the middle of Ontario for sales and service of Apple products. For sales and service in what is known as the Technology Triangle (Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph + Cambridge). Some alternatives have been posted at ehMac.ca RIP First Avenue, but seem to be educationally oriented rather than corporate or retails oriented.

Another thread at ehMac.ca gives a number of confirmations and condolences.
http://www.ehmac.ca/showthread.php?t=24246

This closing follows the closure of another Ottawa, Ontario reseller, B.Mac, that occurred earlier this year along with the auctioning off the there assets, as reported also at ehMac.ca, The Fate of B.Mac is left to the Auctioneer...

Talk of Apple opening there first retail store in Toronto, Canada has begun to heat up with an opening slated for May 21st, 2005. Apple is now hiring for the apple Store Yorkdale in Toronto. http://www.apple.com/ca/retail/jobs/

gmark2000 · Mar 2nd, 2005, 02:21 PM

Welcome newsman! Excellent example of the inverted pyramid of journalism.

Are you a reporter?

newsman · Mar 2nd, 2005, 03:32 PM

This thread is now linked to http://www.macbytes.com/

Mar 1st, 2005, 05:25 PM	#13
simon catching up with my pile Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Barrie, Ontario Posts: 1,921	I was a weekly First Avenue customer (I must have spent 1000's over the years) but I was only able to visit once in a blue moon since I moved up to Barrie 4 years ago. I was there a couple of months ago and I noticed that their usual well-stocked store was "lacking" (if that's the word). The store guys did a great job in revamping it over the years and it's sad to see it go. Sorta explains why I haven't been able to get to their Buy-and-Sell trading post lately - that was another cool tool they offered ... __________________ ----------------------------------------- the crap is still piling up ... Computer: MacPro, MacBook Pro, PowerMac G5, iMac, eMac and 3Gs iPhone. Camera: Canon 5DII with 17-40L, 24-105L ƒ/4IS, 70-200L ƒ/2.8IS, 100-400L IS, 580EXII Camera 2: Canon 40D with 15-85 IS and Sigma 30 ƒ/1.4!! Last edited by simon; Mar 1st, 2005 at 05:40 PM.

Mar 1st, 2005, 05:27 PM	#14
Macaholic Honourable Citizen Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Toronto Posts: 8,754	I've not met him personally or beeen to the store yet, but maybe do give icnme.com a whirl. Wray the owner seems like a great guy. http://www.icnme.com/contact.html __________________ 32GB iPad WiFi. 15" MacBook Pro 2.4GHz Core2 Duo/6GB/200GB/GeForce 8600M GT 256MB GPU/DL-DVDRW/24" BenQ LCD. MacBook 2.4GHz Core2 Duo/2GB/200GB/DL-DVDRW >3TB of FW drives, 16GB iPod Touch, 8GB 5th gen Nano, Canon HV20 HD-DV cam, Kodak digicam, Canon scanner, Canon iP5400 printer, Jailbroken 8GB iPhone 3G. In memoriam: my Sawtooth "Frankenmac" with dual 1.3GHz G4/2GB/360GB striped RAID/DVDRW/ATI Radeon 9000 Pro

Mar 2nd, 2005, 11:22 AM	#16
happ ymac Full Citizen Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Spaniard's Bay NL. Posts: 276	Re; RIP First Avenue For what its worth--The IST department,Math & Computer ,room 1052 at the University of waterloo is a fully certified repair depot for all Apple products except IPOD's.

Mar 2nd, 2005, 12:11 PM	#17
Chipper Full Citizen Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Kitchener ON Posts: 284	NO-O-O-O-O-O!!!!! Say it's not so!!! This is not good news for the Golden Triangle area! Apple needs a viable representative in the K-W area, known as the Technology Triangle, which is growing by leaps and bounds. Unfortunately, I too have noticed the decreasing stock in the store over the last year and was concerned about the future of First Avenue. I really like the staff and will miss their smiling faces and greetings when I walk in. I shall miss their wonderful Saturday seminars. In particular, I will miss John who has been a terrific supporter of the Waterloo Region Macintosh Users Group / WatRMUG over the last few years. He has given his own personal time on several occasions to host meetings in the store when new products have been introduced. Just last month, on Feb 10, John gave 30+ WatRMUG members and guests a terrific overview of iLife '05. I was looking forward to booking him for an overview of Tiger when it is released later this year. What really bothers me is that the staff at First Avenue that I know have young families. I sincerely hope that they can find new jobs quickly. My heart goes out to them. I will miss First Avenue. Brenda __________________ Chipper -- 15.4 MacBook Pro (Intel Core 2 Duo) 2.4 GHz • Fujifilm e900 • Panasonic FZ18 • HP Scanner • HP Deskjet 460 • Lexmark e240 • iPod Video 30 GB -- Waterloo Region Macintosh Users Group WatRMUG - [url] http://watrmug.ca

Mar 2nd, 2005, 01:57 PM	#18
newsman New Neighbour Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 2	Canada Apple reseller to close by March 25, 2005. Canada Apple reseller to close by March 25, 2005. Central Ontario based Apple reseller, First Avenue Information Systems http://www.firstavenue.com have disclosed the intention to close and cease operations on or before March 25, 2005. The owners of First Avenue Information Systems, Waterloo, ON Canada, an Apple reseller and authorized service provider, have decided, after 20 years in business, not to continue. No additional reasons for the closure have been published, and the website still shows business as usual but repeated calls to the reseller location and visits confirm the process of closure has begun. A small sign at the main register and talks with the remaining employees indicates that no new orders are being placed for equipment and no new items are being taken for repair. Orders are being cancelled and refunds credited to clients. This will leave a gapping hole in the middle of Ontario for sales and service of Apple products. For sales and service in what is known as the Technology Triangle (Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph + Cambridge). Some alternatives have been posted at ehMac.ca RIP First Avenue, but seem to be educationally oriented rather than corporate or retails oriented. Another thread at ehMac.ca gives a number of confirmations and condolences. http://www.ehmac.ca/showthread.php?t=24246 This closing follows the closure of another Ottawa, Ontario reseller, B.Mac, that occurred earlier this year along with the auctioning off the there assets, as reported also at ehMac.ca, The Fate of B.Mac is left to the Auctioneer... Talk of Apple opening there first retail store in Toronto, Canada has begun to heat up with an opening slated for May 21st, 2005. Apple is now hiring for the apple Store Yorkdale in Toronto. http://www.apple.com/ca/retail/jobs/ Last edited by newsman; Mar 2nd, 2005 at 02:18 PM.

Mar 1st, 2005, 04:45 PM	#11
Ian Seyler Full Citizen Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Kitchener, Ontario Posts: 40	I was wondering if they were going to be closing. I was in there about a month ago and noticed there was almost nothing in the store. Quite different from when I was in there over 2 years ago to buy my first Mac from them. It's sad to see them go. -Ian

Mar 1st, 2005, 05:12 PM	#12
jfpoole Honourable Citizen Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Waterloo, Ontario Posts: 2,140	I'm not surprised First Avenue is closing. They were in a really bizarre, out-of-the-way location, and the service was hit or miss; you could spend half an hour there before someone talked to you because they were locked in conversation with another customer. Ah well.

Mar 1st, 2005, 05:36 PM	#15
mactrombone Full Citizen Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Cambridge Posts: 359	I just called icnme.com and they do seem really nice. I will pursue that route a little and see what happens. Nice website and they were certainly helpful over the phone.

Mar 2nd, 2005, 02:21 PM	#19
gmark2000 Honourable Citizen Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Oakville, ON Posts: 2,687	Welcome newsman! Excellent example of the inverted pyramid of journalism. Are you a reporter? __________________ Gary PMG5 Dual 2.5 • G5 iMac 20 • AlBook 17HD • BlackBook Core Duo • iPhone 3G • 2G 20Gb iPod • 60Gb iPod photo • 3G 4Gb Nano • 4x G3 iMacs • PM6100/60 (why am I keeping this?) Original Apple eWorld member • Apple user since 1982 • Yorkdale t-shirt #3! • Eaton Centre #7 • Sherway Gardens #5 • Pacific Centre • Fairview #5 Got any OS9 educational/kids' software?

Mar 2nd, 2005, 03:32 PM	#20
newsman New Neighbour Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 2	This thread is now linked to http://www.macbytes.com/

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