Tai Lin Radio Service
Encyclopedia
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
's largest electrical appliance retail chains. Founded in 1946, it liquidated
Liquidation
In law, liquidation is the process by which a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed. Liquidation is also sometimes referred to as winding-up or dissolution, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation...
on 17 October 2008, having thirteen branches altogether throughout the territory at the time.
History
Tai Lin opened its first store at 309 Nathan Road, Yau Ma TeiYau Ma Tei
Yau Ma Tei, also known as Waterloo , is an area in the Yau Tsim Mong District in the south of the Kowloon Peninsula in Hong Kong.-Name:Yau Ma Tei is a phonetic transliteration of the name 油麻地 in Cantonese...
, primarily selling radio sets. Since then, it rapidly developed its servicing, management and retail services, besides including tape recorder
Tape recorder
An audio tape recorder, tape deck, reel-to-reel tape deck, cassette deck or tape machine is an audio storage device that records and plays back sounds, including articulated voices, usually using magnetic tape, either wound on a reel or in a cassette, for storage...
s, gramophone
Phonograph
The phonograph record player, or gramophone is a device introduced in 1877 that has had continued common use for reproducing sound recordings, although when first developed, the phonograph was used to both record and reproduce sounds...
s and amplifier
Amplifier
Generally, an amplifier or simply amp, is a device for increasing the power of a signal.In popular use, the term usually describes an electronic amplifier, in which the input "signal" is usually a voltage or a current. In audio applications, amplifiers drive the loudspeakers used in PA systems to...
s into its line-up. In 1957, Tai Lin became the first electrical appliance store to introduce stereo
STEREO
STEREO is a solar observation mission. Two nearly identical spacecraft were launched into orbits that cause them to respectively pull farther ahead of and fall gradually behind the Earth...
Hi-Fi to the Hong Kong market.
In the population boom of the 1960s, Tai Lin expanded its product line to television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
sets, refrigerator
Refrigerator
A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...
s, washing machine
Washing machine
A washing machine is a machine designed to wash laundry, such as clothing, towels and sheets...
s, air conditioners and camera
Camera
A camera is a device that records and stores images. These images may be still photographs or moving images such as videos or movies. The term camera comes from the camera obscura , an early mechanism for projecting images...
s, among others, and at the same time, opening new branches to form a retail chain. In 1976, Tai Lin registered itself as a company under the name "Tai Lin Radio Services Limited."
The 1980s and 1990s were defined as Tai Lin's "golden age." The chain has spent HK$50 million in 1989 to refurbish its existing branches. In addition to three stores in Mong Kok
Mong Kok
Mong Kok , less often known as Argyle , is an area in the Yau Tsim Mong District on Kowloon Peninsula, Hong Kong...
and To Kwa Wan
To Kwa Wan
To Kwa Wan is a bay and an area of the eastern shore of Kowloon peninsula of Hong Kong. The area is part of urban Hong Kong, and is adjacent to Hok Yuen, Hung Hom, Ma Tau Wai and Ma Tau Kok...
, Tai Lin made its proactive expansion throughout the Hong Kong market with new stores in Kwun Tong
Kwun Tong
Kwun Tong is an area in Kwun Tong District, situated at the eastern part of the Kowloon Peninsula, and its boundary stretches from Lion Rock in the north to Lei Yue Mun in the south, and from the winding paths of Kowloon Peak in the east to the north coast of the former Kai Tak Airport runway in...
, Sha Tin
Sha Tin
Sha Tin, also spelled Shatin, is an area around the Shing Mun River in the New Territories of Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Sha Tin District.-Geography:...
, Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay is a heavily built-up area of Hong Kong, People's Republic of China, located on the Hong Kong Island, and covering parts of Wan Chai and Eastern districts. The Chinese name is also romanized as Tung Lo Wan as in Tung Lo Wan Road...
et cetera. At its peak in 1997, Tai Lin had 13 stores altogether.
After 62 years in existence, Tai Lin collapsed and succumbed, reportedly to the effects of the global financial crisis, affecting 260 personnel from thirteen branches.
Stores
The following are all of Tai Lin's stores at the time of its closure:Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...
- Times Square
- 905B-906, 9th Floor
- 815-816, 8th Floor
- Shop 2015-2016, Podium Level 2, IFC Mall
Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
- 309 -310, Level 3, Ocean Centre, Harbour City, Tsim Sha TsuiTsim Sha TsuiTsim Sha Tsui , often abbreviated as TST, is an urbanized area in southern Kowloon, Hong Kong. The area is administratively part of the Yau Tsim Mong District. Tsim Sha Tsui East is a piece of land reclaimed from the Hung Hom Bay now east of Tsim Sha Tsui...
- G52, Ground Floor, Telford Plaza I, Kowloon BayKowloon BayKowloon Bay is a bay located at the east of the Kowloon Peninsula and north of Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is the eastern portion of Victoria Harbour, between Hung Hom and Lei Yue Mun...
- Basement, Sim City, Mong KokMong KokMong Kok , less often known as Argyle , is an area in the Yau Tsim Mong District on Kowloon Peninsula, Hong Kong...
- 310 - 312, Nathan Road, JordanJordan, Hong KongJordan is an area in the Yau Tsim Mong District of Hong Kong. The unofficial area is named after a road of the same name.-Geography:Jordan is located in the central part of the Yau Tsim Mong District, as suggested by the name of some bus stops nearby...
- 32B, Mut Wah Street, Kwun TongKwun TongKwun Tong is an area in Kwun Tong District, situated at the eastern part of the Kowloon Peninsula, and its boundary stretches from Lion Rock in the north to Lei Yue Mun in the south, and from the winding paths of Kowloon Peak in the east to the north coast of the former Kai Tak Airport runway in...
New Territories
New Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...
- 623-626, Level 6, New Town PlazaNew Town PlazaNew Town Plaza is a shopping mall in the town centre of Sha Tin in Hong Kong. Developed by Sun Hung Kai Properties, it was the biggest shopping mall in the New Territories of Hong Kong when it was completed in the early 1980s...
, Phase 1, Sha TinSha TinSha Tin, also spelled Shatin, is an area around the Shing Mun River in the New Territories of Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Sha Tin District.-Geography:... - G33-34, Ground Floor, The Edge, 9 Tong Chun Street, Tseung Kwan OTseung Kwan OTseung Kwan O is a bay in Sai Kung District, New Territories, Hong Kong. In the northern tip of the bay lies the Tseung Kwan O Village....
- G04 Ground Floor, The Edge, 9 Tong Chun Street, Tseung Kwan OTseung Kwan OTseung Kwan O is a bay in Sai Kung District, New Territories, Hong Kong. In the northern tip of the bay lies the Tseung Kwan O Village....
- G - 1/F, Chow's Building, 4 Shiu Wo Street, Tsuen WanTsuen WanTsuen Wan is a bay in the Kowloon area of Hong Kong, opposite to Tsing Yi Island across Rambler Channel. The market town of Tsuen Wan emerged for the surrounding villages and fleets of fishing boats in the area. The town is around the present-day Tsuen Wan Station of the MTR...
- G30-G33 & G35, Ground Floor, Tuen Mun Town Plaza, Phase 1, 1 Tuen Shing St, Tuen MunTuen MunTuen Mun is a town near the mouth of Tuen Mun River and Castle Peak Bay in the New Territories, Hong Kong. It was one of the earliest settlements in Hong Kong which can be dated back to the Neolithic period. In the more recent past, it was home to many Tanka fishermen who gathered at the Castle...
External links
- Tai Lin Radio Service Limited homepage (archived copies)