Universal Radio closing November 30, 2020

[PXR-5]

I will certainly miss them

 

[chucksim1]

Never been there(the Columbus area would be quite a drive for me), but I purchased my TRX-1 and SDS-100 from them. They shipped and arrived rather quickly, excellent scanners, enjoy them both.

 

[GlobalNorth]

They were an institution in the radio hobby. The hobby is diminished with their retirement, but they richly deserve to enjoy their time.

 

[yardbird]

Good Luck of there retirement.

David

 

[902]

It's a shame. I purchased a number of things from them and they were always on my bid list. Maybe the most valuable service they had was the web listing of equipment, along with a picture and description, accessories list, and whether it was currently manufactured or discontinued, and what its predecessor and successor equipment was. Too bad there was apparently no buyer to pass the business along to. I do wish them nothing but the best in their retirement.

 

[west-pac]

If you read the announcement on their website it sounds like the store location is already closed, by the health emergency, but the website will be ran for the "foreseeable future".

 

[mbott]

If you read the announcement on their website it sounds like the store location is already closed, by the health emergency, but the website will be ran for the "foreseeable future".

It's been that way for months now. They've processed orders for parking lot pickup or shipping. I did several parking lot pickups this summer.

--
Mike

 

[wa8pyr]

Fred and Barbara Osterman, the people behind Universal Radio in Worthington (Columbus), Ohio, are retiring and closing the store permanently on November 30, 2020. Existing customer orders will be fulfilled.

Their letter to their customers here:

Retirement notice.

such a shame this is a great place....i used to go into their shop when it was off of Brice road many times...ive been to the "new location " once....

Heard about this last week. BUMMER!!!

Fred and Barb have been good friends to the radio hobby and me personally, and I'll really miss having Universal just a short drive away; it's been a part of my life for over 40 years, all the way back to when it was located on Aida Drive in Reynoldsburg. Best wishes to them and hope they have a long, happy retirement!

 

[whooey]

Nothing but great service with my dealings with UR, best wishes for their retirement.

 

[nissanzx1]

This makes sense as i had ordered an Icom R6 recently and the order wasn’t ever filled

 

[wa8pyr]

This makes sense as i had ordered an Icom R6 recently and the order wasn’t ever filled

Did you contact them? They've had supply and shipping issues/delays due to COVID like everyone else.

 

[nissanzx1]

Did you contact them? They've had supply and shipping issues/delays due to COVID like everyone else.

No they kept the order for about 2-3 days and then sent an email message saying that they were out of stock. It was a touch annoying but I’m certainly not upset about it. I was able to find one quickly at R and L and they took good care of me.

 

[RFI-EMI-GUY]

Sad to see them go. Another 2020 blow. They had great service and website. I wonder if they are planning a clearance sale? It would be nice if the website remained archived as there cataloguing was excellent.

 

[Boombox]

Like some others, I wonder why, or if, they had a buyer for the business, as it's obvious to everyone in the radio hobby that they have had a definite online presence for quite a few years. I realize that competing with the online retail giants is a rough hurdle, but still....

 

[LEH]

Universal will certainly be missed, I shopped there often when living in Ohio. Best of luck to Fred and Barbara in their retirement.

 

[kb9mlj]

I have never visited the store, but I have bought many items there over the years. They were always very responsive to any questions and I enjoyed doing business with them. I wish them well in their retirement and I will miss them as an option for future purchases.

 

[N4DJC]

A shame, they had a nice selection of SWL equipment over the years.

 

[TailGator911]

I have been to their place several times over the years. Always a stop when I am in the Columbus area. Sad to see them go.

 

[Larry27]

Too bad.
I have been a Universal Radio customer for over 25 years.
I always liked browsing the website when things got slow at work.
My late cat Tiger is immortalized on page 105 of Customer Cats.
I pray they have a great retirement.

 

[kbmp0992]

Sounds like this group in Newton MA. I remember shopping here in the 70's for my first regency scanner.

Electronics | “You-Do-It” Electronics Center

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Couple of years back I went by on my way to a funeral, and was shocked they were still there.

I haven't been in there in years, and I assumed they were dead. I never left there without buying something I didn't need. It's Needham, by the way, but near the line. My son is the sales manager at the Ford store "across the street."