“If it’s good radio, we have it.” In 1926, that was the slogan of the Shure Radio Company, a new wholesale radio parts company located in the heart of Chicago. It was a promise backed up by one man, Sidney N. Shure, who took orders, packaged orders, and often delivered them as well, using Chicago’s elevated trains, buses, and streetcars to reach his customers in the city.
In his one-room office, he oversaw an inventory of more than 1,000 radio parts in addition to those that were stocked by manufacturers and shipped directly to customers. Everything was neatly organized for maximum efficiency, allowing Mr. Shure to fulfill his guarantee: “Orders phoned in before 10:00 a.m. are delivered the same day.”
Shure was a “wholesale only” business. Mr. Shure made it clear that he would sell only to dealers—never compete with them. The Company’s first catalog, published in 1926, stated: “First and foremost, we are committed to a policy of protecting the independent Radio Dealer. We sell Radio only, at wholesale only, to Dealers only. We have no retail store and do not compete with our customers for the consumer trade.”
A lighted counter display used by Shure dealers in the 1940s.
This pledge was important in establishing Shure’s reputation as a reliable and trustworthy company. Dealers wanted to know that they were getting a “fair shake” when they ordered parts over the phone from a new name in the radio parts business. Mr. Shure’s policies assured his customers that they would receive “quality merchandise, the right prices, and exceptionally prompt service.”
For example, a written policy in 1926 stated that Shure “handled only lines of those manufacturers who… merchandise their products in a clean-cut, respectable manner…meriting the confidence of the legitimate retail trade. We believe that our dealers should and do depend upon our technical judgment as to what constitutes Good Radio equipment.”
Shure was in the radio parts business for only a few years; but the Company’s relationships with dealers continued after Shure made the transition from a parts wholesaler to a manufacturer of audio equipment. Mr. Shure never lost sight of the importance of giving dealers good products at the right price. And dealers always knew that the man whose name was on the catalog would stand behind the order.
