Tandy in Hitchin

Spotting some old Tandy branding in Hitchin.

We were recently back in Hitchin, Hertfordshire and spotted the electronics shop at Churchgate had closed down. Electronic Universe had been trading in the town since 1982 and closed due to retirement last February. The old shop signs had been taken down and luckily for us we were able to see some even older branding from when the shop was a Tandy dealer! A nice blast from the past.

A once familiar sight on UK high streets. Circa 1990

While visiting Hitchin Market back in March 2016 I spotted a great old Tandy sign at the back of the shop at Biggin Lane that brought back happy memories for me.

The Tandy sign round the back of the shop

My first job was at a Tandy franchise shop in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, where I remember selling a number of electronic products bearing the 'RadioShack', 'Genexxa' and 'Realistic' brand names. Halcyon days.

In 2001 Tandy said goodbye to the UK high street as the last of the shops were converted after their acquisition by Carphone Warehouse.

I thought the Tandy brand name was still defunct, but it's not as Tandy lives on as an online retailer of electronic components and kits!

Interestingly the name Tandy comes from one of the founders of a leather goods company called Tandy Leather - a business that later became RadioShack.

There is still a RadioShack trading in the UK. It's in Lytham Saint Annes.