[7] He gave a portion of the proceeds, around $1 million, to each of his sons, John (who had worked as the IT manager for the supermarket chain), W. Randolph (who goes by the nickname "Randy"), and David, none of whom had much interest in grocery store retailing.

[8][9] Instead, on May 17, 1985, they joined together with a fourth partner, John's former girlfriend Kathryn Kolder, to open the first Fry's Electronics store at a 20,000 sq ft (1,900 m2) site in Sunnyvale, California.

[12] The original Sunnyvale store (located near the intersection of Oakmead Parkway and Lakeside Drive[13]) stocked numerous high-tech supplies such as integrated circuits, test and measurement equipment, and computer components, as well as software and various other types of consumer electronics.

Fry's moved again to its final Sunnyvale location at 1077 E Arques Ave, the former site of a facility of the Link Flight Simulation Division of the Singer Corporation.

[13] Because Fry's stores were enormous, stocking a wide range of each product category, they were popular with electronics and computer hobbyists and professionals.

In August 2014, Fry's Electronics operated 34 brick-and-mortar stores in 9 U.S. states: California (17),[19] Texas (8), Arizona (2), Georgia (2), and one each in Illinois, Indiana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.

[23] However, on January 7, 2020, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the Fry's location in Duluth, Georgia, was shuttered without advance notice during the 2019 holiday season.

On the evening of February 23, 2021, several internet sources began claiming employees were given notice that all remaining stores would close to the public nationwide, with the Frys.com website scheduled to go offline at 12:00 am PST.

[27] Fry's officially entered general assignment on April 2, 2021, and began to liquidate all remaining assets, including owned real estate with Hilco Global.

[29][30][31][32] In 2003, actors Denzel Washington, Bruce Willis, and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger sued Fry's for $10 million each for posting their images on television sets on their print ads and flyers without permission.

[33][34] On Black Friday 2007, customers at the Renton, Washington location complained that Fry's employees were offering to let people cut in front of a long line for a fee.

[35] In 2008, the Federal Communications Commission found Fry's failed to place the required "analog-only tuner" consumer-alert label on analog televisions, fining them $384,000 (~$533,663 in 2023).

[43] In 2017, a store in Webster, Texas made headlines when a manager set up a display to demonstrate indoor grow lights for sale and used realistic looking but ultimately fake marijuana plants.

In 2019, rumors about the chain folding spread rapidly, mainly because shelves were empty for long periods of time and stores seemed to emphasize makeup and fragrances over electronics.

[23] From when Fry's put out this statement until early 2021, four additional stores closed (three were in California, and one in Duluth, Georgia),[24] which further led many to believe that the company would soon go out of business.

With the opening of the store in Fishers, Indiana, Fry's made a "race track" theme with various hanging displays, including "stop" and "go" signs, as well as many photos of what life looked like in the late 1800s and early 1900s in Indianapolis.