Trans World Entertainment
 | |
| Public | |
| Traded as | NASDAQ: TWMC |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | December 1972 |
| Headquarters | Albany, New York |
| Products | CD, Blu-ray, and DVD stores |
| Subsidiaries |
Suncoast Motion Picture Company f.y.e. |
| Website |
www |
Trans World Entertainment Corporation is a chain of entertainment media retail stores in the United States. It currently operates just over 300 freestanding and shopping mall-based stores under several brand names, down from about 540 in August 2010.
Based out of Albany, New York, Trans World was founded in 1972 by Robert Higgins. It opened its first store, called Record Town (formerly Record Land), in 1973. The company went public in July 1986 and has expanded through acquisitions of a number of smaller or failing companies including Strawberries, Camelot Music, and Wherehouse Entertainment.
On September 23, 2000, Trans World signed a definitive agreement to acquire the assets of WaxWorks, and the deal was expected to close by the end of October.[1]
As part of a 2002 settlement with 41 states over CD price fixing Trans World Entertainment, along with retailers Musicland and Tower Records, agreed to pay a $3 million fine.[2] It is estimated that between 1995 and 2000 customers were overcharged by nearly $500 million and up to $5 per album.[3]
In February 2006, Trans World acquired the Musicland Group, which owned Sam Goody, Suncoast Motion Picture Company, and Media Play. This also included a handful of On Cue stores.
Trans World operated at a net loss from 2006 to 2010. In fiscal year 2011 it turned a profit of $2.2 million (compared to a $31 million loss in FY 2010). The company closed some locations and increased margins on its products.[4]
Chains
- Suncoast Motion Picture Company: Nationwide (mall-based)
- SecondSpin.com: California, Colorado (focusing on purchase and resale of used media products)
- Manifest Discs and Tapes: South Carolina, North Carolina
- Spin Street Music: Memphis, Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut
- Record & Tape Traders: One Location left in Towson, MD
- f.y.e.: Nationwide (mall-based and freestanding)
Defunct
- Camelot Music
- CD World: New Jersey and Missouri[5][6][7]
- Coconuts: Chicago area, Indianapolis area, New Jersey, New York, and Mid-Atlantic States (some stores still operate as Coconuts)
- Disc Jockey: Southern U.S. (mall-based)[8][9]
- Incredible Universe: Nationwide (17 stores; closed in 1996, six stores sold to Fry's Electronics; joint venture with Tandy Corporation)
- Leopold's: California[10][11]
- Media Play: Nationwide (closed in 2006)
- Music World: New England states
- On Cue: Nationwide[12][13][14][15]
- Planet Music: Virginia Beach
- Peaches: Nationwide
- Record Factory: Brisbane, CA[16][17][18][19]
- Record Land: Nationwide (mall-based)
- Record Town: Nationwide (mall-based)
- Record World: Mid-Atlantic and New England states (mall-based)
- Sam Goody: Nationwide (mostly freestanding; most mall-based stores have been re-branded as f.y.e. stores)
- Saturday Matinee: Now only one location at Rockaway Townsquare in Rockaway, New Jersey; other locations closed or converted to Suncoast; previously operated in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Virginia, Texas, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania
- Spec's Music Inc.: Florida
- Square Circle: Nationwide (mall-based)
- Strawberries: Texas, Maryland, New England and Mid-Atlantic States[20][21][22][23][24]
- Streetside Records: Missouri, Midwest[25][26]
- Tape World: Nationwide (mall-based)
- Vibrations: South Florida
- The Wall: Mid-Atlantic States[27][28][29]
- Wall To Wall Sound & Video / Listening Booth: Mid-Atlantic States, later converted to The Wall[27][30][31]
- Wherehouse Entertainment:[16] Arizona, California, Colorado (formerly Rocky Mountain Records), Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington;[32] filed for bankruptcy in 2003;[33][34] Trans World took control of 111 stores and liquidated nearly a third of them[35][36]
References
- ↑ "Trans World Invests In Brick-And-Mortar".
- ↑ "CD Price Fixing Suit Settled For $143 Million". Billboard. 2002-10-01. Retrieved 2016-04-26.
- ↑ Stephen Labaton (2000-05-11). "5 Music Companies Settle Federal Case On CD Price-Fixing". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-04-26.
- ↑ DeMasi, Michael. "FYE owner Trans World reports first fiscal-year profit since 2006". The Business Review. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
- ↑ "Trans World to buy CD World". The Business Review. September 18, 2003.
- ↑ Johnson, Greg (September 19, 2003). "Trans World to buy bankrupt CD World". Daily Deal.
- ↑ Kwok, Chern Yeh (July 9, 2002). "Streetside, CD World Will Merge: Record Company's Local Stores Will Operate The Same Way They Have In The Past". St Louis Post-Dispatch – via HighBeam Research. (Subscription required (help)).
- ↑ "Trans World absorbs Disc Jockey music chain". The Business Review. October 31, 2000.
- ↑ "Trans World Entertainment SEC 10-K Annual Report for Fiscal Year Ending February 3, 2001". Securities and Exchange Commission. February 3, 2001.
- ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=vyQEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT19&lpg=PT19&dq=Leopold%27s+was+bought+by+the+Record+Factory&source=bl&ots=aR6NVNK2JQ&sig=HTZhOQiS83dzm1xsH8Dp1BSSowU&hl=en
- ↑ http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/groovy-old-1970-pic-of-tower-records-san-francisco-csn-y-deja-vu-just-released-only-2-88.308843/page-11
- ↑ Christman, Ed (December 28, 2002). "Tower Records' Struggle Reflected Industry's Turmoil". Billboard. 114 (52). p. 45. Alternate Link via ProQuest.
- ↑ Tellijohn, Andrew (May 12, 2002). "On Cue brand will become Sam Goody". Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal.
- ↑ Heller, Laura (April 22, 2002). "Best Buy converts On Cue stores to Sam Goody name". DSN Retailing Today. 41 (8). pp. 5, 27. Link via ProQuest.
- ↑ Garrity, Brian & Benz, Matthew (April 13, 2002). "On Cue Rebranding As Sam Goody". Billboard. 114 (15). p. 63. Alternate link via ProQuest.
- 1 2 http://articles.latimes.com/1986-06-13/business/fi-11015_1_wherehouse-entertainment
- ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=70QEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT27&lpg=PT27&dq=%22Record+Factory%22+Brisbane&source=bl&ots=ECw8LDm8-k&sig=Z-dm74rwWhy7sq28xV-PSjd6fIY&hl=en
- ↑ http://publicrecords.directory/profiles/sterling-lanier.5512778.html
- ↑ Billboard - Feb 3, 1979 - Vol. 91, No. 5 "Record Factory's parent company. Mighty Fine Distributing. Brisbane, Calif"
- ↑ "Video Supplier Has New Chief". New York Times. December 31, 1993.
- ↑ "Partnership Buys Control Of Strawberries Inc.". New York Times. September 1, 1994.
- ↑ "Trans World closes on Strawberries deal". The Business Review. October 9, 1997.
- ↑ Cuff, Daniel F. (October 25, 1989). "New Strawberries Chief To Expand Music Chain". New York Times.
- ↑ Snow, Anita (August 22, 1989). "Video Company Chief, Wife Found Fatally Shot In Mansion Home". Associated Press.
- ↑ "RIP Streetside Records Delmar". Playback STL. December 24, 2007.
- ↑ Shrubshell, Don (December 6, 2012). "Streetside Records to close next month". Columbia Daily Tribune.
- 1 2 Chapman, Francesca (September 23, 1993). "Handwriting On The Wall Wee Three Record Outlet Spinning Into A Bigger Chain". Philadelphia Daily News.
- ↑ "Camelot Music Agrees to Purchase The Wall; Camelot Music and WH Smith PLC Announce Signing of Letter of Intent". PR Newswire (Press release). October 31, 1997 – via The Free Library.
- ↑ Kasrel, Deni (December 5, 1997). "Bankrupt buyers woo The Wall. (Camelot Music Inc.)". Philadelphia Business Journal.
- ↑ Burke, Richard (July 21, 1990). "Wall To Wall Sound Files Petition For Bankruptcy Relief In Phila.". Philadelphia Inquirer.
- ↑ Simmons, Sheila (May 16, 1990). "Wall To Wall Stressing Software". Philadelphia Daily News.
- ↑ Articles about Wherehouse by Date - Page 5 - latimes
- ↑ Leeds, Jeff (January 22, 2003). "Wherehouse Files for Chapter 11". Los Angeles Times.
- ↑ "Wherehouse Music stores' parent files for bankruptcy". St. Louis Business Journal. January 21, 2003.
- ↑ "Court OKs Purchase of Wherehouse Stores". Los Angeles Times. October 1, 2003.
- ↑ Christman, Ed (October 11, 2003). "TransWorld Trumps Sun Capital In Its Bid For Wherehouse". Billboard. 115 (41). p. 73. ISSN 0006-2510.
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