Demise of the Radio & TV Trade.

[Murphyv310]

Hi.
I think we all know that the Radio & TV service industry is now dead and buried.
Oddly enough only last night I got an unexpected call from an old colleague. We got on the chat about days gone by and companies that are no more, he was round the block as you would say and had worked with a few multinationals and JVC in East Kilbride.
We did a rough calculation of the engineers employed in Ayrshire from the companies we worked in and took 1975 as a baseline.
It was agreed that there would have been upwards of 200 engineers at that time.
I did this little exercise.
They are in no set order but are more geographical for ease of memory etc, its not hugely accurate as some places are not listed due to memory or more likely lack of it.
Company....................... Number of engineers in 1975...................... Engineers now........................ Company status now........
Wilson & Wallace, Ayr .......................3 .................................................0................................................. Closed
Fairbairns Ayr..................................... 7..................................................0.................................................Closed
Bill Millar Prestwick ...........................3..................................................0................................................. Closed
British Relay, 3 in Ayrshire................55................................................0................................................ Went bust
Dodds of Troon...................................12................................................0................................ TV service ceased in the 90's
Clydesdale, Kilmarnock and depot...60..............................................0.................................................Went bust
Robinsons TV service Irvine.................1................................................0.................................................. Closed
Co-op, all Ayrshire Depots...................4................................................0....................................No longer do servicing
Radio Rentals Kilmarnock...................6................................................0.................................................Closed
DER Kilmarnock...................................5................................................0................................................Closed
Multibroadcast Kilmarnock................5................................................0.................................................Closed
Glens ......................................................4.................................................0.................................................Closed
JH Donald Kilmarnock........................12...............................................1......................................Warranty work only
Gregor Watson......................................6.................................................1......................................Warranty work only
Bairds Sorn............................................3.................................................0..................................................Closed
Lanes TV New Cumnock.......................3................................................0................................................. Closed
Malcom Ross Cumnock........................4.................................................1................................Had one engineer last year

These are the companies I remember and some that were mentioned in the call. There were other one man businesses two come to mind in Kilmarnock and a couple in Saltcoats so the 200 figure is probably reasonable. There are other towns like Girvan, Darvel, Kilburnie, Ardrossan and Largs that although I do know had engineers I have no idea of how many were employed.
The result though of two plus one possible just shows how the trade is long gone and frankly forgotten.

[Murphyv310]

You also need to factor in the large population increase in Kilmarnock and the other big towns, the road network to Glasgow is now all motorway so many have moved here. The town though has lost many industries.
EG. BMK, Massey Ferguson's, Saxone, Glacier Metal, Johnnie walker, to name a few. Out with the town, SKF, Scottish Aviation etcetera.

[radioman]

I think that D. Stevenson in Girvan is still on the go.
Does sales and repairs (mainly Panasonic) but I don't know how many engineers work there.

Andy

[Murphyv310]

Hi Andy.
Yes one I forgot. I do think the smaller towns and those not so close to the cities and larger places will quite possibly have a bigger chance of having an engineer.
Also you will know yourself that farmers are more likely to mend and make do than townies. Certainly Girvan and Sorn would come under that spectrum. Bairds of course as we know has closed for more than one reason. Bob will be 77 in January but the pressing need there is care for his wife, he did though mention many times that it was dying. Sad as Bob was one of the few that invested in lots of equipment for LCD & Plasma, including jigs to hold the sets while they were dismantled, up to date test equipment and big rows with Samsung and others that flatly refused to supply manuals and components.

One other sector that employed engineers was the furniture outlets, Grants up here had a few but these were often swallowed up by the big rental companies.

[ppppenguin]

It was ever thus. Old trades die out, new trades spring up. Sometimes old trades have a revival - chimney sweeps for example.

[Murphyv310]

In the words of Albert Steptoe, a load of cobblers.
Yes very fitting, how many get their shoes repaired?
Jeffrey I've not seen a chimney sweep for years, last one was on Laurel and Hardy.

[ppppenguin]

There 's an independent shoe repairer on my local parade. Timpsons are doing very well as a national chain.

Fair number of chimney sweeps working down here in London because of all the people with their wood burning stoves. Nothing like the number there would have been up to the 1950s.

[Murphyv310]

Is there not new rules coming 're wood burners in London? Up here there are virtually no chimneys in use due to the high numbers using gas central heating.
We did have a cobbler in the town but Timpsons effectively closed him down. Allegedly they are not that cheap now. I fix my own shoes, so perhaps I'm part of the local chaps demise.

[Geordie McBoyne]

The best decade for my shop was the 1980s, I actually made some money then and paid a lot of tax both on profits and VAT. The 80s was good for me.
The 1990s weren't too bad but I should heeded the warning signs that TV rental was on the decline but really didn't do anything about it. Should have looked out for other things to sell and do. Up to 2005 things were ticking over but then on things really did go bad. Both the business and myself because of the clapped out condition I was in.
So I'm writing this in my loss making shop.

Geordie McBoyne.

[ppppenguin]

I have no idea if the London wood burner ban will ever actually happen, let alone be enforced.

David, I think we've been trying to persuade you to get rid of the shop for a long time