TigerDirect sold to direct marketing company PCM for $14 million in cash

[Shawn Knight]

PCM (formerly PC Mall) has agreed to purchase the TigerDirect brand as well as some other business to business assets from parent company Systemax for a total of $14 million in cash. The deal doesn’t include any of the company’s cash, accounts receivable, inventory or trade payables, PCM revealed in a press release.

TigerDirect was founded by Carl and Gilbert Fiorentino, Karlton Norman and Orlando Ramos in 1987 and acquired by Systemax in 1997. Systemax later went on to purchase the CompUSA brand in 2008, consolidating it into TigerDirect in 2012. During that time, Systemax also purchased the Circuit City brand (notice a trend here?), itself rolled into TigerDirect in 2012.

Systemax operated a number of TigerDirect-branded brick-and-mortar stores across the country and internationally over the years. Earlier this year, however, the company announced it would be closing all but three of its 34 retail stores. The remaining stores – its flagship retail space in Miami as well as another in Georgia and one in Puerto Rico – will be shutting their doors as per the PCM acquisition.

The Fiorentino brothers, meanwhile, ran afoul with the law in connection with their participation in an illegal scheme that netted more than $11 million in kickbacks and other benefits which they hid from shareholders. Specifically, Carl Fiorentino was sentenced to 80 months behind bars while the younger of the brothers, Gilbert, received a sentence of 60 months of imprisonment. Additionally, they were ordered to pay $3.06 million in restitution.

Thumbnail courtesy Chris Desrochers, Flickr

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https://www.techspot.com/news/62840-tigerdirect-sold-direct-marketing-company-pcm-14-million.html

 

[oldikes]

Haven't ordered anything from tiger direct in years. Even more meh pricing than newegg and that's saying something.

 

[BlueDrake]

A few years ago I got my GTX 660 there, being it was actually the cheapest of all options I had. Also it was a specific form factor, being the case was too small for the larger 660 Ti's and such from those times.

 

[umbala]

Haven't ordered anything from tiger direct in years. Even more meh pricing than newegg and that's saying something.

Yup, exactly how I feel! I remember about 10 years ago TigerDirect was awesome. I used to buy pretty much all my computer hardware from them. But now they're garbage. I don't even compare prices with TD anymore, because it's just a waste of time. Their prices are ALWAYS hire than newegg, NCIX, CanadaDirect, etc.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

14 mill? Chump change. No ones gonna miss them anyway.

 

[OutlawCecil]

Haven't ordered anything from tiger direct in years. Even more meh pricing than newegg and that's saying something.

Yup, exactly how I feel! I remember about 10 years ago TigerDirect was awesome. I used to buy pretty much all my computer hardware from them. But now they're garbage. I don't even compare prices with TD anymore, because it's just a waste of time. Their prices are ALWAYS hire than newegg, NCIX, CanadaDirect, etc.

Exactly what I have found as well! Took the words right out of my mouth.

 

[Squid Surprise]

They took more than 11 million in kickbacks... and were forced to pay back a little over 3 million...in exchange for 5 and 6.5 years of prison time (which will probably be less for "good behaviour"), they net 8 million.... not so bad actually....

 

[hood6558]

I built some of my first PCs from CompUSA parts. They never had a broad selection, but a basic PC or even a decent gaming rig was possible. Always liked buying local, because it makes returns painless and quick. Towards the end, though, it was usually a blank mission - nothing worth buying or prices too high. I do miss being able to pop in for a quick fan or power supply in an "emergency". Now there is nowhere in Jacksonville,Florida to buy PC parts (unless you count Best Buy's very limited selection).

 

[p51d007]

Haven't ordered anything from tiger direct in years. Even more meh pricing than newegg and that's saying something.

Same here...TD was my "go to" place for pricing, but as you say...Newegg has better prices.

 

[tonylukac]

Seems very low in price.

 

[captaincranky]

They took more than 11 million in kickbacks... and were forced to pay back a little over 3 million...in exchange for 5 and 6.5 years of prison time (which will probably be less for "good behaviour"), they net 8 million.... not so bad actually....

If this was a federal case, I don't think you can do any less than 85% of the sentence. (Fed sentences are doled out in months, not in "ranges", such as "2 1/2 to 5"). Securities fraud and the like, as you are probably aware, are federal crimes.

They would most likely will qualify for "camp" or minimum security "accommodations". Um, what I believe is colloquially know as, "club fed"..

 

[Squid Surprise]

Yep... so, as I said, less than what their original sentences are... for 8 mill, would you serve a few years in min security? Not saying I definitely would - but I have to admit I'm not saying I definitely wouldn't either...

 

[captaincranky]

Yep... so, as I said, less than what their original sentences are... for 8 mill, would you serve a few years in min security? Not saying I definitely would - but I have to admit I'm not saying I definitely wouldn't either...

I don't know if this was a fed case or not. But, it sort of makes sense for that to be so, as there is an interstate component to the fraud issue. Plus, the article reports the sentences in months, as per (US) federal "sentencing guidelines".. Then too, "shareholders" were defrauded, and that goes directly to SEC statutes.

My only point was, with a US federal case, they're not not going to be back on the street in maybe 18 months, after receiving a "2 1/2 to 5 year" term. "85%" is only a month and a half reduction every 10.

As to the limited amount of restitution, the prosecution may not have tried to pursue "linkage", or the judge may have observed the statute of limitations, and dropped any amount of theft before it.

As for the moral component of the issue, 11 million bucks in certainly enough to set the black angel on your left shoulder a' chattering away....