RadioShack Corp. (Fort Worth, Texas) has formed a Canadian subsidiary to oversee the expansion of its chain of specialty consumer electronics stores in Canada as part of the company’s planned North American expansion strategy to have as many as 30 stores operating in Canada by the end of the year.
The announcement comes on the heels of a March court ruling, in favor of RadioShack, voiding a licensing agreement by InterTan Canada Ltd (Barrie, Ont.), formerly owned by RadioShack parent company Tandy Corp. but bought by Circuit City Stores Inc. (Richmond, Va.) in May 2004. The ruling prohibited Circuit City from using the RadioShack name in Canada or sub-licensing the RadioShack name to its independent dealers past June 2005. As such, Circuit City announced last week it is relinquishing the RadioShack name at almost 900 stores in Canada in favor of a new, untested brand.
“I have one thing to say to our Canadian customers: RadioShack will continue to be there to service your consumer electronics needs,” said RadioShack president and ceo-elect David Edmondson. “For more than 35 years, RadioShack has been a household name to Canadians, and that’s why we fought so hard to protect our brand. The loyalty and trust our customers place in us has made our name one of the most powerful brands in North America.”
Edmondson said RadioShack has been exploring several options in Canada since winning its lawsuit. He expects that most of the company’s new Canadian stores will be in the Toronto area. He also said the company is extending offers to existing independent Canadian RadioShack dealers who wish to continue operating under the company’s brand name and infrastructure after June.
According to Edmondson, the new concept store will offer a fresh new look for RadioShack, with brighter colors, enhanced lighting, attractive graphics, contemporary and moveable fixtures, wider isles, easier-to-locate merchandise, interactive displays, a more centralized checkout process for enhanced speed and service and, in most cases, more useable square footage per store. The new store format is already found in more than 500 United States stores and is being aggressively rolled out across the country.