https://marco.org/2007/12/28/last-march-the-wise-men-who-run-circuit-city-came
Last March, the wise men who run Circuit City came up with the brilliant idea of laying off their more senior salespeople, who get $14-$15 an hour, and replacing them with new hires who get around $9 an hour. It turns out that this move was not very good for business. One of the reasons that people go to a store like Circuit City, rather than buying things on the Internet, is that they want to be able to talk to a knowledgeable salesperson. Since Circuit City had laid off their knowledgeable salespeople, there was little reason to shop there.
— Circuit City executives ran the company into the ground and are getting rewarded handsomely (thanks, John). Retail is awful for many reasons, but this is one of the biggest.