LaFayette Radio
Encyclopedia
Lafayette Radio Electronics Corporation was a radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...

 manufacturer and retailer based in Syosset, New York
Syosset, New York
Syosset is a hamlet in Nassau County, New York, in the northeastern section of Town of Oyster Bay near the North Shore of Long Island. The population was 18,829 at the 2010 census...

. The company sold radio sets, amateur radio
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...

 equipment, citizen's band (CB) radios, and other communications equipment, as well as electronic component
Electronic component
An electronic component is a basic electronic element and may be available in a discrete form having two or more electrical terminals . These are intended to be connected together, usually by soldering to a printed circuit board, in order to create an electronic circuit with a particular function...

s and tools through retail outlets as well as by mail-order.

History

Established in the 1920s, Lafayette Radio Electronics (LRE) became a thriving mail-order catalog business; the electronic components it sold were a boon to amateur radio operators and electronic hobbyists in areas where such components were not available in local retail outlets. Lafayette's main competitors were Radio Shack
RadioShack
RadioShack Corporation   is an American franchise of electronics retail stores in the United States, as well as parts of Europe, South America and Africa. As of 2008, RadioShack reported net sales and operating revenues of $4.81 billion. The headquarters of RadioShack is located in Downtown...

, Allied Radio
Allied Radio
Allied Radio was an American radio manufacturer and retailer, which sold radio sets, tubes, capacitors , amateur radio equipment, citizen's band radios, miscellaneous communications equipment, electronic kits, and consumer audio systems through retail stores and mail-order.-History:Beginning in...

, Heathkit
Heathkit
Heathkits were products of the Heath Company, Benton Harbor, Michigan. Their products included electronic test equipment, high fidelity home audio equipment, television receivers, amateur radio equipment, electronic ignition conversion modules for early model cars with point style ignitions, and...

, and "mom and pop" (independent) radio dealers throughout the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Lafayette Radio had stores in both Jamaica, N.Y., and in Manhattan, N.Y. in the mid-1950s and these were probably the first two retail stores in the company's history. The electronics kits were produced in the Jamaica facility.

Lafayette advertised heavily in major U.S. consumer electronics magazines of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly Stereo Review
Stereo Review
Stereo Review was an American magazine first published in 1958 by Ziff-Davis with the title HiFi and Music Review. It was one of a handful of magazines then available for the individual interested in high fidelity. Throughout its life it published a blend of record and equipment reviews, articles...

, High Fidelity, Audio
Audio (magazine)
Audio magazine was a periodical published from 1947 to 2000, and was America's longest-running audio magazine. Audio published reviews of audio products and audio technology as well as informational articles on topics such as acoustics, psychoacoustics and the art of listening...

, Popular Mechanics
Popular Mechanics
Popular Mechanics is an American magazine first published January 11, 1902 by H. H. Windsor, and has been owned since 1958 by the Hearst Corporation...

, and Popular Electronics
Popular Electronics
Popular Electronics was an American magazine started by Ziff-Davis Publishing in October 1954 for electronics hobbyists and experimenters. It soon became the "World's Largest-Selling Electronics Magazine". The circulation was 240,151 in April 1957 and 400,000 by 1963. Ziff-Davis published Popular...

, among others. The company offered a free 400-page catalog filled with descriptions of vast quantities of electronic gear, including microphones, tape recorders, speakers, and other components that could be obtained for free by mailing in a coupon.

Retail stores

Until the 1960s, many independent retailers in some markets became Lafayette Radio "Associate Stores", which were displaced when the company expanded. These stores were supported from headquarters at 111 Jericho Turnpike in Syosset, NY and a warehouse in Hauppauge, NY. A limited selection of product was stocked, with full access to a catalog with a wide variety of parts, tubes, cameras, musical instruments, kits, gadgets and branded gear that could be ordered and delivered through the local store. The company made major investments in what were called sound rooms to demonstrate hi-fi equipment, using custom switch panels and acoustic treatments in an attempt to duplicate a home listening environment and offer fair comparison with an assortment of branded hi-fi gear.

Managers were rewarded for maximizing gross profit margins and inventory "turns", which led to frequent out-of-stock situations, often remedied by frequent cross-town inter-store transfers. Each store had a repair shop on site with a part-time technician. Stores ranged in size from 2000 to 5000 square feet (464.5 m²).
By the late 1970s, Lafayette expanded to major markets across the country, struggling to compete with Radio Shack
Radio shack
Radio shack is a slang term for a room or structure for housing radio equipment.-History:In the early days of radio, equipment was experimental and home-built. The first radio transmitters used a noisy spark to generate radio waves and were often housed in a garage or shed. When radio was first...

, which had purchased rival Allied Electronics around 1970. Lafayette ran into major financial difficulty when the FCC authorized a new Citizens Band ("CB") spectrum with 40 channels. Lafayette's buyers had firm commitments to accept delivery of thousands of the older design units, and were not able to liquidate the inventory without taking a serious loss. Eventually, all of the old CB radios were sold for under $40.

With fewer than 100 stores, far fewer than the aggressively expanding Radio Shack's thousands of local outlets, Lafayette Radio remained more of a dedicated enthusiasts' store than a mass marketer. The company was also hurt by the advent of electronics retailers relying on aggressive marketing techniques and competitive pricing in the late 1970s. Many experienced managers departed. Formerly a national chain, the remaining Lafayette stores in the state of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 closed by the end of 1981.

Some local Lafayette stores remained open until 1981. For example, the Long Branch, New Jersey
Long Branch, New Jersey
Long Branch is a city in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 30,719.Long Branch was formed on April 11, 1867, as the Long Branch Commission, from portions of Ocean Township...

, store finally closed in the Fall of 1981. Unsold inventory was literally shovelled into dumpsters overnight to vacate the store. One store in the Trenton, NJ area went on independently to become known as "Laraco Electronics". Laraco had one retail location that served the area on Business Route 1 in Lawrenceville, NJ until its closing in late 2002.

Several Lafayette stores were purchased by Circuit City of Richmond, VA. In order to keep the Lafayette name, which was popular in New York, Circuit City changed the store names to "Lafayette-Circuit City". However, these store locations were much smaller than a standard Circuit City, and did not carry major appliances, which Circuit City carried at the time. The stores were eventually closed as Circuit City left the New York Market (only to return later). The Syosset repair center was kept open a year after the last store closing to handle warranty coverage. Lafayette-Circuit City used the phrase "no haggling" in its ad campaign, which featured celebrities such as Don King, in trying to demonstrate that the lowest price was always posted, unlike many competitors in where you would have to bargain with the sales person for a lower price. This approach, however, did not work, and Lafayette-Circuit City fell due to competition from other New York area electronic retailers such as Newmark and Lewis, Trader Horn, The Wiz, Crazy Eddie and PC Richard.

As of 2003, the Lafayette brand name was re-launched at the CES show that year. Their products are only offered through special dealers and limited retail stores.

Products

Most of Lafayette's products ranged from stereos to two-way radios for Hams and CBers, and shortwave listeners. Many were dedicated types with special functions, such as VHF receivers for police and fire channels built into a CB radio. A complete model line included many models and brand names to choose from for just about any purpose. Many of the models have been discontinued.
The product line also covered other manufacturers' products through seasonal catalogs. The company's best selling products were often shortwave
Shortwave
Shortwave radio refers to the upper MF and all of the HF portion of the radio spectrum, between 1,800–30,000 kHz. Shortwave radio received its name because the wavelengths in this band are shorter than 200 m which marked the original upper limit of the medium frequency band first used...

 receivers, parts, and portable radios. In the 1960s, most Lafayette brand radios were rebranded Trio-Kenwood
Kenwood Electronics
is a Japanese manufacturer of amateur radio as well as Hi-Fidelity and portable audio equipment.-History:The company first started in 1946 as the Kasuga Radio Co. Ltd. In Komagane City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. In 1960 the firm was renamed "Trio Corporation"...

 sets, which were of moderate performance and build quality. A significant share of 60's and 70's vintage Lafayette hi-fi gear was manufactured by a Japanese subcontractor named "Planet Research". "Criterion" brand speakers were built by several offshore and some domestic assemblers. Science kits were popular. One product of interest from Lafayette Radio Corporation was a small Atom Smasher (van de Graaff generator
Van de Graaff generator
A Van de Graaff generator is an electrostatic generator which uses a moving belt to accumulate very high voltages on a hollow metal globe on the top of the stand. It was invented in 1929 by American physicist Robert J. Van de Graaff. The potential differences achieved in modern Van de Graaff...

), Model F-371. The address for this product was listed as 165-08 Liberty Ave., Jamaica 33, N.Y., which is now a Storage Plus location but was once the site of a major Lafayette outlet.

While the catalog heavily promoted their own branded products, Lafayette also carried models from many other hi-fi manufacturers of the era, including Marantz, Fisher, Pioneer, AR, Dynaco, KLH, Wharfedale, Bozak, BIC, Garrard, Dual, TEAC, Akai, Shure, Pickering, Electro-Voice, JVC, Panasonic, Sony and others. The catalogs and advertising helped promote the concept of high-fidelity sound to customers, some of whom lived many miles away from major electronics stores, during a time when only the largest urban areas had dedicated "stereo" stores. Lafayette also offered TV vacuum tube testing
Tube tester
A tube tester is an electronic instrument designed to test certain characteristics of vacuum tubes. Tube testers evolved along with the vacuum tube to satisfy the demands of the time, and this evolution faded with the tube era, yet with the High-End advent, they became a pricey piece of...

, for customers who wanted to service their own televisions.

Lafayette was quick to jump on industry trends, embracing first open reel tape recorders and later 8-track cartridge recorders and compact cassette
Compact Cassette
The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel...

 recorders, along with an amazing array of gimmicks, supplies, and accessories. During the mid-1970s, the company was one of few places one could actually experience four channel ("quadraphonic") sound. However the lack of a single industry standard (Columbia SQ vs. JVC's CD-4 and Sansui's QS) dampened sales, and the experiment ended in 1976.

Lafayette also sold a variety of electronic musical equipment made by different manufacturers. There were solid-body and hollow-body electric guitars, probably made by Teisco or Harmony. Microphones, amplifiers, and various electronic effects such as reverbs were available. One of the most famous effects that Lafayette sold was the Uni-Vibe, used by many musicians, most notably Jimi Hendrix. Robin Trower, Stevie Ray Vaughan and others later used the effect to emulate Hendrix's sounds and achieve new ones of their own.

Store locations

Lafayette retail store locations according to catalog listing.

[NY/NJ/MD/MA listings augmented by reference to ads in Popular Mechanics and Popular Science.]

CT: W. Hartford, Stamford (later, Trim Fashions, now CVS), Hamden, Bridgeport, Enfield, Groton, Manchester, Torrington, Waterbury

CA: Hawthorne, Canoga Park, Carson, Cerritos, Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Inglewood, Long Beach, North Hollywood, Northridge, Orange, Panorama City, Santa Monica, Studio City, Torrance, West Covina, Whittier

DE: Wilmington

FL: Orlando, Tampa, Miami, Hollywood, Jacksonville

GA: Atlanta/Buckhead, Decatur, Dunwoody, Forest Park, Greenbriar Mall/Atlanta, Marietta

IN: Indianapolis (4 Locations)

IL: Chicago metro area (Chicago, Ford City, New Town), Arlington Heights, Evergreen Park, Morton Grove, Norridge, Schaumburg, Villa Park

MA: Boston metro area (584 Commonwealth Ave., Prudential Center, Brookline), Worcester, Burlington, Danvers, Saugus, Natick (1400 Worcester St.), West Roxbury/Dedham, Springfield

MD: Baltimore metro area, Prince Georges County-Mt. Rainier/Hyattsville (3191 Queens Chapel Rd.), Dundalk, Glen Burnie, Marlow Heights, Rockville, Towson

MI: Store #1 on Broadway Ave in Detroit (aka Barton Electronics), Store #2 on Maple in downtown Birmingham (store was lost due to fire), Store #3 on Plymouth Road in Livonia (aka Robbie), Store #4 on Van Dyke in Sterling Heights, Store #5 Ann Arbor, Store #6 Kalamazoo (aka Kaltronics), <<10721 West 10 Mile Oak Park - Main Office, Warehouse and Store #7 (aka Eric)>>, Store #8 Trenton, Store #9 Farmington (aka Nancy), Store #10 Grand Rapids, Store #11 on Gratiot in Roseville, Store #12 on M59 in Waterford, Store #14 in Lansing. Two other nicknames for stores are Neutronics and Pentronics just not sure which ones. All of these were part of Eric Electroncis dba Lafayette Radio

MN: Brooklyn Center, Edina, Roseville

MO: St. Louis (Bridgeton, Crestwood, Jenkins)

NJ: East Brunswick, Newark (24 Central Ave.), Paramus (182 Route 17), Parsippany, Pennsauken, Plainfield (139 West 2 St.) Totowa, Union, Watchung

NY: New York City - Manhattan (71 West 45th St., 17 Union Square West, 100 Sixth Ave.), Brooklyn (2265 Bedford Ave.), Bronx (542 E. Fordham Rd.) Jamaica Queens (165-08 Liberty Ave.); Buffalo (Main Street near Tupper St, Amherst, West Seneca, Eastern Hills), Rochester (Irondequoit, Greece, Pittsford), Scarsdale (691 Central Park Avenue), Schenectady, Syracuse (E.Syracuse) Hempstead, L.I. (Franklin Ave.), Syosset, L.I. (111 Jericho Tpke.), Flushing

OH: Cleveland (Parma Heights, North Olmsted, Mentor, Warrensville Heights), Toledo, Columbus, Cincinnati

OK: Sapulpa (Creek Hills Mall, later moved to Rock Creek Center before becoming a Radio Shack)

PA: Pittsburgh (Bridgeville/Collier (Great Southern Shopping Center), Monroeville, North Hills, Pleasant Hills), Allentown, Lancaster, Philadelphia, King of Prussia, Oxford Valley/Langhorne, York, West Chester.

RI: Providence, Warwick

TN: Nashville

TX: Tyler (closed 1980)

UT: Salt Lake City (Store still exists as an electronic supply and surplus outlet, now known as Ra-Elco)

VA: Richmond (in 6600 block of Midlothian Turnpike), Falls Church, Harrisonburg (Rolling Hills Shopping Center, East Market St.). Hampton and Virginia Beach

WI: Milwaukee (Bay Shore, Greenfield, Wauwatosa)

External links

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