Each month features an updated reprise of a Tech Tip from ten years ago as many past Tips are well worth review. Also, some will benefit from updating. Enjoy the forty-fifth monthly Tech Tip reprise.
April 25, 2015, marks the 90th anniversary of Shure Incorporated. Founded as the Shure Radio Company by S.N. Shure, then only twenty-three years old, his new business opened at 19 South Wells Street in Chicago.
It was a one-man operation, selling parts to radio dealers and to AM radio kit builders. Mr. Shure’s business was modeled on the successful wholesale general merchandise catalog house started in 1888 by his uncle Nathan – the N. Shure Company. Mandel Shure, father of S.N., was a minority partner in his brother’s business-to-business operation.
Our archive holds a copy of the 1903 N. Shure Company catalog. It consists of 588 pages and includes an expansive variety of products: jewelry, household goods, watches, eyeglasses, camping gear, toys, musical instruments, linens, appliances, weapons, ammunition, and more. But no radios or microphones as it was only 1903, one year after the birth of S.N. Shure.
Like the N. Shure Company, the Shure Radio Company mailed catalogs periodically to its customers. Below is a 1927 catalog page – similar to today, loudspeakers, headphones, and cables were offered.
By 1955, after three decades in business, Shure Brothers Incorporated had evolved into a world-renown manufacturer of microphones, phonograph cartridges, and magnetic recording heads, with over 400 employees. In this era, the majority of our business was OEM – Original Equipment Manufacturing, i.e., making products for other companies to use with their devices, such as two-way radios, phonograph players, or tape recorders. Our current business model of selling solely through dealers and distributors became firmly established by the 1960s. Shure’s OEM business eventually faded away by the 1990s.
Related information: Vintage Shure catalogs
Shure OEM Business: 1930 – 1990
Arcana – mysterious or specialized knowledge
Shure Radio Company was renamed Shure Brothers Company in 1928 when Samuel J. Shure joined the company. What happen to S.J. -the younger brother by three years of S.N. Shure? In 1930, Samuel left Shure Brothers to pursue a career in sheet metal fabrication. He moved to St. Louis, Missouri, joined a prominent firm, and forged a successful career. His company still exists as Shure Manufacturing Corporation. S.J. Shure died on December 23, 1964. He was 59.
Shure Manufacturing Corporation Values
- Quality – quality comes first, always
- Customers – our customers are the focus of everything we do
- Improvement – we deeply believe continuous improvement is vital to our success
- Partners – suppliers and distributors are our valued partners
- Integrity & good citizenship – these principles are guiding our corporate character
Shure Manufacturing Corporation is a company that makes quality products by quality people for quality customers, on time, at a fair profit — and have fun doing it!
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Here is the earliest known magazine ad for a mic branded as Shure Brothers Company. It dates from January 1932. Check out the cool vintage logo.
