Radio Rentals

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Radio Rentals United Kingdom logo that was used in the 1990s

Radio Rentals was formed in 1932 to rent out radio sets. It later moved into televisions and ultimately videos. In 1968 it was acquired by THORN Electrical Industries and merged with its DER chain (founded 1938), and in 2000 it merged with Granada Limited to form Box Clever. The company still trades as Radio Rentals in Australia.

[edit] United Kingdom

Radio Rentals operated mainly in the UK, having started life in Brighton, Sussex, England. Growth of a public TV service after the war encouraged more people to want TV sets but they were expensive, leaving an opportunity for companies like RR to offer them at a monthly rental price which was much more affordable. With the coming of colour services, initially on BBC2 only, a further opportunity for renting was created. On November 15th 1969, colour broadcasts on both BBC channels and the ITV network became available from the main transmitter sites around the UK. This led to a boom in rental of the sets.

Later, in the latter 1970s, video recorders appeared on the market but were expensive. Only 5% of UK households had video recorders in 1980. Radio Rentals elected to offer Ferguson branded JVC VHS machines from 1977 onwards. With the advent of satellite broadcasting in the 1980s, Radio Rentals offered a range of equipment for rent, enabling more viewers to watch both Sky services and British Satellite Broadcasting (digital) services. (These broadcasters were later to merge and form British Sky Broadcasting.)

At its peak, Radio Rentals claimed it had more than 2 million customers, over 500 shops and employed 3600 technicians, 2700 skilled installers plus a large ancillary staff. They had sales and service locations across the UK, the RR logo being a common sight on many High Streets.

As domestic electronics became more reliable, with greater use of integrated circuits and better design methods, the urge to rent rather than buy became less - sets were cheaper to buy and more reliable. The company went through many restructures, shedding staff and rebranding itself. In common with other well known rental brands, it could not sustain a viable business model and has ceased to trade, merging with Granada Limited's rental arm to form Box Clever.

[edit] Oceania

Radio Rentals Australia logo

Radio Rentals South Australia logo

Thorn operates 70 Radio Rentals stores within Australia, and 28 stores in New Zealand under the name DTR.

An independently owned chain operates 19 stores within South Australia however is not in anyway related to Radio Rentals owned by Thorn Australia PTY LTD.