Companies That You Expect to Disappear Soon

[Trackman]

I bought a Matsui (Dixons own brand) microwave for £49.99 in 1985 from Dixons and I declined the extended warranty for another £49.99 - that microwave died over 30 years later !. Dixons also had an own brand "Miranda" iirc for electronics so the "Matsui" name might have been used for the larger kitchen goods with the same name (iirc ?) for Currys.

I had a portable Matsui colour TV. Never gave me any trouble, was withdrawn basically because it was obsolete tech.
Did Dixon's have the Saisho brand, or is that someone else?

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Did Dixon's have the Saisho brand, or is that someone else?

Yes. Believe the 'Saisho' brand first got retired by Dixons (and then put up for sale in/around 2011) having initially been created/established almost 30 years beforehand.

 

[Peter Sarf]

I had a portable Matsui colour TV. Never gave me any trouble, was withdrawn basically because it was obsolete tech.
Did Dixon's have the Saisho brand, or is that someone else?

Gosh, that ("Saisho") rings a bell.

 

[jon0844]

There was certainly a Dixons in the departure lounge in North Terminal, Gatwick when I retired in 2020.

It seems WHSmith took over the stores that Dixons gave up at airports.

 

[dgl]

Matsui was their "Japanese" brand, naturally none of it was Japanese it was just used to make the products seem better.
Looks like Dixons acquired Curry's in the late 70's so a good while ago, whereas PC World was a much newer acquisition.

 

[65477]

Although I have not followed all 131 pages of this thread the recent posts regarding Dixon's and Currys don't actually relate to the thread title. Although it no longer exists as a brand Dixon's is a great survivor of the high street, or at least out of town centres.Starting as a single store the Kalms family grew Dixon's into a company that then acquired Carphone Warehouse and Currys. Then as the market changed they adapted by renaming both the plc and stores as Currys. So yes Dixon's as a brand is no longer the plc is still successful as a company.

 

[Peter Sarf]

Although I have not followed all 131 pages of this thread the recent posts regarding Dixon's and Currys don't actually relate to the thread title. Although it no longer exists as a brand Dixon's is a great survivor of the high street, or at least out of town centres.Starting as a single store the Kalms family grew Dixon's into a company that then acquired Carphone Warehouse and Currys. Then as the market changed they adapted by renaming both the plc and stores as Currys. So yes Dixon's as a brand is no longer the plc is still successful as a company.

Indeed Dixons (Group or DSG iirc) is instead possibly the exception.

 

[jon81uk]

In the beginning there was Dixons and Currys - two competing high street stores (remembering Rumbelows as well). That was the case as far back at 1980. Curries I think sold white goods as well as smaller stuff while Dixons did not really sell white goods (washing machines, fridges and freezers). Dixons Group then set up PC world and these were usually (always ?) as out of town big stores - specialising in computers and peripherals. Dixons Group then bought Currys (circa 2000) and eventually the Dixons name got replaced by Currys especially where out of town stores selling small stuff and large white goods was concerned. Last ten years PC world seemed to wane and got moved into "Currys". Dixons Group is the parent. The Dixons name on the outlets seems to have completely disappeared. That is my recollection.

Dixons bought Currys in 1984 but continued to run them as seperate brands into the 2000s, but generally Dixons in high streets and Currys out of town.

 

[Peter Sarf]

Dixons bought Currys in 1984 but continued to run them as seperate brands into the 2000s, but generally Dixons in high streets and Currys out of town.

That fits with my recollection. The high street Dixons I know of seem to have closed roughly 2015 - 2024 and so now maybe only the Currys name is left.

 

[AM9]

Dixons as a company started in the 1930s as a photographic studio. Post war it expanded to a chain of shops selling prtographic equipment and materials selling mainly german (Praktica), russian (Zenith) and some cheaper Japanese cameras. They did however sell many cameras from second order manufacturers such as Halina and Chinon under their 'Prinz' house brand name.
Dixons shops were rebranded as were most other partsd of the retail operation, and the Curry's name became ubiquitous. The Dixons name did persist for a while following the takeover of Carphone Warehouse.

 

[lookapigeon]

The Dixons name is still used but in the airport stores.

 

[jon81uk]

It seems WHSmith took over the stores that Dixons gave up at airports.

Although in general the focus at the Dixons airport stores was duty free sales priced lower than high street. But the WHS tech stores seem to be more focused on items you may need for the journey instead of discounted pricing.

 

[bspahh]

I had a Saturday job at Dixons in 1983/4. Most of the time I was in the computing section, where it was a mixture of Spectrums, Acorn Atoms and BBC micros. They had a desk with an Apricot system which had an orange on black monitor. The boss used to call it "Dixons Photographic", but by then the camera section was a bit of a niche, with most of the money coming from the electricals. Then Saisho was the Dixons own brand. Matsui was for Currys.
Wikipedia lists these own brands:

Current​

Dixons' brand lineup underwent a major reorganisation during 2010.[27] As of August 2013, the brands in use include the following:

• Essentials[28] – Includes Currys Essentials and PC World Essentials.[27]
• Logik[27][28][29] – Registered as a trademark since 1989.[30] Intended for everyday use with an "emphasis on reliability and efficiency" and "a better value alternative to the major name brands without compromising on performance."
• Advent[27][28] – Established PC World brand used for computers, peripherals and other accessories.
• Sandstrøm[27] – Intended to compete with higher end consumer electronics brands, Sandstrøm is claimed to be "inspired by Scandinavian design [and] designed to combine aesthetics with performance."[28]
• Goji[27][28] – Producer of equipment including computers, smartphones and audio products as well as bags and storage. Distributed by Dixons Group.

Former​

Saisho brand logo

• Prinz/Prinzsound/Prinztronic – The Prinz brand was first used on Japanese manufactured goods during Dixons' 1950s expansion.[26]
• Miranda – Originally the name of a Japanese company, Dixons acquired the brand in 1981, and used it on cameras and photographic kit.[31] As of 2011, Dixons still owned rights to the name, but no longer used it and planned to sell it off.[31]
• Saisho – Introduced in 1982.[32] Dixons announced its intention to sell the brand off in May 2011.[31]

1980s Matsui logo with the pseudo-Japanese "rising sun" symbol

• Matsui – Introduced in the 1980s by Currys as a brand for its consumer electronics goods assembled in the United Kingdom, using imported components. Products in the Matsui line involved neither Japanese parts nor Japanese labour, but were branded with a Japanese sounding name, a rising sun symbol and the motto "Japanese Technology Made Perfect"'.[33] The brand was retired in 2010 as part of the company's rationalisation of own labels.[34]
• Carlton – was used by Currys for own brand white goods.[35]

 

[Islineclear3_1]

Their Dixons shops sold computers.

And cameras

I bought my very first laptap from Dixons (a heavy beast back then) and a couple of film compacts. Used their film developing service too

 

[birchesgreen]

My amusing Dixons story is when i went to buy a portable CD player (boombox kind of thing), the assistant couldn't operate it, so i had to show him how it worked. Still bought it though.

 

[jon0844]

Although in general the focus at the Dixons airport stores was duty free sales priced lower than high street. But the WHS tech stores seem to be more focused on items you may need for the journey instead of discounted pricing.

WHS doesn't know the word 'discounting', especially at airports!

 

[daveo]

My "amusing" DSG story was a good many years ago when I was on Oxford Street in London, and, as a novice, looking to move on from my ZS Spectrum to a "proper" laptop. I saw, in PC World, a machine that looked interesting, and noticed a space with connector at the back. I went in and asked an assistant what the space was for. "I'm not sure, I'll go and ask" said the young man. He returned fairly quickly with an older man who examined the laptop and said "I think that's a space for fitting peripherals, or it could be for memory expansion." Not fully convinced I left the store and walked a short way along Oxford Street to Dixons where I saw the identical laptop. I went in and asked the same question, to receive an immediate and confident reply, "That's where the battery fits sir."

 

[CC 72100]

It seems WHSmith took over the stores that Dixons gave up at airports.

A great move we can all be thankful for. Whenever I fly I always think that if there is anything airports lack, it's enough branches of WHSmith.

 

[Dai Corner]

Ted Baker

Ted Baker closes final stores putting 500 jobs at risk

All of the fashion brand's stores are expected to have shut by the end of Tuesday.

www.bbc.co.uk

"The remaining 31 Ted Baker stores in the UK are set to close this week, putting more than 500 jobs at risk.

All of the fashion brand's stores are expected to have shut by the end of Tuesday.

The firm behind Ted Baker's UK shops, No Ordinary Designer Label (NODL), fell into administration in March this year.

In April, its administrators closed 15 shops and cut 245 jobs.

Before it fell into administration, Ted Baker had about 975 employees in the UK and ran 46 shops, plus an e-commerce platform and department store concessions."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles...The remaining 31,department store concessions.

 

[trebor79]

That's a shame, they made nice clothes of good quality. I actually bought some at Stansted airport recently. Only time I've ever bought anything other than essentials at an airport.

 

[Dai Corner]

That's a shame, they made nice clothes of good quality. I actually bought some at Stansted airport recently. Only time I've ever bought anything other than essentials at an airport.

Not being at all interested in fashion, I'd never heard of Ted Baker until I bought a pair of their shoes in a charity shop recently. Good to know they're of good quality and well worth the £8.50 I paid!

 

[Iskra]

The clothes were good, but became a bit unfashionable quite quickly after some unsavoury behaviour came to light by the founder, which no doubt affected sales significantly hence why they are in their current situation.

 

[AndrewE]

ASDA? Was mentioned on the radio recently, losing its way as the new owners don't know how to run a grocery chain (as was said to me by an insider about Morrison's maybe 6 months ago.)

 

[Russel]

ASDA? Was mentioned on the radio recently, losing its way as the new owners don't know how to run a grocery chain (as was said to me by an insider about Morrison's maybe 6 months ago.)

My local Asda has always been quite clean and tidy, until the takeover, standards have certainly slipped.

 

[richw]

ASDA? Was mentioned on the radio recently, losing its way as the new owners don't know how to run a grocery chain (as was said to me by an insider about Morrison's maybe 6 months ago.)

Since the Asda takeover my local Asda has been badly stocked with many empty shelves. The create your own pizza counter is rarely open- that was often my main reason for going to Asda- I fancied a custom pizza for dinner.

My last online Asda shop had 15 substitutes such was the store so badly stocked.

I’ve shopped elsewhere for the last few months

 

[52290]

Earlier this year I proposed Marstons as a candidate for extinction. Well they are certainly progressing well towards achieving that. Having formed a joint company with Carlsberg to operate their brewing division, Marstons have now sold their 40% holding to Carlsberg, giving the Danes total control of the former Marstons breweries. Carlsberg have already closed the Jennings, Wychwood and Ringwood breweries and have sold the former Charles Wells brewery in Bedford to the Spanish lager brewery Estrella. They have also refused to guarantee the continued operation of the Wolverhampton and Burton breweries. On top of all this Carlsberg have decided to serve what is basically keg beer through hand pumps. A slight of hand trick if ever there was one.
Marstons are now just a pub operating company, they haven't paid a dividend since January 2020 and have only their pubs to sell off to reduce their debt.
Also, I nearly forgot, Carlsberg have scrapped the unique Burton Union system of fermentation at the Burton brewery although some of the Union sets have been donated to the Thornbidge brewery.

 

[m79900]

I'm getting a bit worried about Jaguar now to be honest. For the last 15-20 years or so, they've been trying to position themselves as a BMW/Mercedes rival, and now they've just decided to scrap the whole lineup and reposition to rival Bentley. Will people pay £100k+ for a Jag when until this year you could pick up a new XE for circa £30k? Castle Brom's shut now, and some of the new models are being built in India. It seems like our 'dead' car industry just finds ways to get deader.

 

[JamesT]

I'm getting a bit worried about Jaguar now to be honest. For the last 15-20 years or so, they've been trying to position themselves as a BMW/Mercedes rival, and now they've just decided to scrap the whole lineup and reposition to rival Bentley. Will people pay £100k+ for a Jag when until this year you could pick up a new XE for circa £30k? Castle Brom's shut now, and some of the new models are being built in India. It seems like our 'dead' car industry just finds ways to get deader.

As I understand it, none of the current lineup are making them any money. The other half of the business - Land Rover - shifted more upmarket which appears to have been a success. I don't believe they're quite going after Bentley, an article I saw was suggesting the Porsche Taycan as a likely comparator.

 

[Thirteen]

I would assume Land Rovers are selling well enough for JLR to scrap the entire Jaguar lineup in order to relaunch it.

 

[E27007]

As I understand it, none of the current lineup are making them any money. The other half of the business - Land Rover - shifted more upmarket which appears to have been a success. I don't believe they're quite going after Bentley, an article I saw was suggesting the Porsche Taycan as a likely comparator.

Perhaps Jaguar will be sold on ,their CEO is rebuilding Jaguar as 100% ZEV, Jaguar have just dropped almost all of their petrol/diesel-engine cars from their vehicle sales range. An alternative is Jaguar as a 100% ZEV car maker as a tool to counter-balance sales of non-ZEV Land Rover cars to achieve compliance with the ZEV Mandate (2024 Act of Parliament).
The ZEV mandate is a penalty system of £15,000 per car-quota shortfall if a car maker does not meet or exceed mandated quotas for sales units of ZEV cars, for 2024 the quota is 22% of sales units, rising incrementally year-by-year. 2029 quota is 66% and 2030 80% by units.
Many car makers are targeting fleet sales over private sales in order to achieve their penalty-free ZEV quotas, the private buyer both here in the UK and the USA are showing resistance to the purchase of ZEV cars