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History of the manufacturer  

Fidelity Radio Co. Ltd.; London

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Name: Fidelity Radio Co. Ltd.; London    (GB)  
Abbreviation: fidelity
Products: Model types
Summary:

Fidelity Radio Co. Ltd.
11-13, Blechynden Street, London, W.11 (1946 -1964)
6 Olaf Street, London, W.11. (1964)
Factory: Victoria Road, London NW10 (1970 - 1988)

Fidelity Radio Ltd. was a UK manufacturer founded by Jack Dickman in 1946 initially manufacturing radios.
This was followed by tape recorders, stereo systems, TVs, and Cordless Phones.

They also operated as an outsourced electronics manufacturer for other brands in the 1970s & 80s.
Closed in 1988.

Founded: 1946
Closed: 1988
Production: 1946 - 1988
History:

Founded in 1946 by Jack Dickman after serving in the RAF in WW2. He put his wartime gratuity to good use and produced his first radio product the Caravan Set.

He concentrated on value-for-money products and when the company went public in the early 1970s stockbrokers rated his company one of the “best managed”. [1]

His first share offer was heavily oversubscribed and in November 1971 he delighted investors by delivering much more than was promised at the flotation.

Turnover the previous year had been £4 million, with pretax profits of £265,000. The prospectus forecast profits of £420,00. In fact, 1971-2 yielded nearly twice that figure, £820,000, from a turnover of £6 million. [2]

In the early 1970s, they opened a 200,000 sq. ft. factory at Victoria Road London. [3]

Dickman passed away at the age of 66 in 1986.[1]

On 4 September 1984 Caparo Industries, an industrial holding company run by Swraj Paul made a £13.5 million takeover bid for Fidelity.

Alan Sugar’s Amstrad company had an informal sub-contracting manufacturing contract at this time with Fidelity. Sugar was also thinking of placing a rival bid to acquire Fidelity’s customer base. However, Sugar was aware that Fidelity had run into problems with its production of televisions & cordless phones and pulled his bid and decided to expand his Shocburyness factory instead.

Caparo bought Fidelity later that month by raising its bid to £14.1 million. However, by July 1985, Caparo issued writes against former Fidelity Directors and its former Auditors who had allegedly made over statements of profit and stock values. Caparo was seeking damages of £10 million. Caparo spent the next 3 years trying to make Fidelity profitable but to no avail. [4]

Alan Sugar’s Amstrad Plc paid £3.1 million for the Fidelity brand and sundry assets to Caparo Plc in 1988.
Sugar planned to use the name on consumer electronics and two video recorders will be the first to use the name Amstrad Fidelity. The Amstrad name will be dropped from consumer electronics once an association has been established in the public mind and Amstrad will only be used on computers and business products. [5]

[1] Chief Executive Feb 1983, page 8.
[2] Business Administration Sep 1972, Page 51.
[3] Radio & Electronics Constructor Mar 1976, Page 506.
[4] Alan Sugar, The Amstrad Story, ISBN 0-7126-3518-1.
[5] Techmonitor, Technology May 10, 1988.

This manufacturer was suggested by Konrad Birkner † 12.08.2014.


Some models:
Country Year Name 1st Tube Notes
GB  62 TR-19 ECC83  Solid State Rectifier FC116. 
GB  47 Caravan Set 2546   Available in a number of shades. Case made from Tufnol, a shellac impregnated fibre materi... 
GB  74 RAD24    
GB  60 Ayr OC44  Socket for external aerial. 
GB  61 Argyll Major [2 Track] EF86  Portable tape recorder. Single speed (3.75 ips), dual track, reel size 5.75 inch. Fitted w... 
GB  61 Coronet GET874  In later models, the transistors were changed to 3 x AF117, OC81D and 2 x OC81. The long w... 
GB  63 Fairline 2G417  Two of the 12 transistors are used as diodes. Set has an RF amp, & seperate local osc (not... 
GB  62 Floret AF117 
GB  61 Fidelity Radio Florida Transistor Six (6) OC44  The model Florida Transistor 6 is an early transistor radio from Fidelity Radio Ltd., Lond... 
GB  60 HF17 EF89   
GB  58 RG26 ECC85   
GB  66 Comet AF115 

[rmxhdet-en]

Further details for this manufacturer by the members (rmfiorg):

[1] Chief Executive Feb 1983, page 8.tbn_gb_fidelity_1_chief_executive_feb_1983_page_8.jpg
[2] Business Administration Sep 1972, Page 51.tbn_gb_fidelity_2_business_administration_sep_1972_page_51.jpg
[3] Radio & Electronics Constructor Mar 1976, Page 506.tbn_gb_fidelity_3_radio_electronics_constructor_mar_1976_page_506.jpg
Practical Wireless Jan 1969, Page 724tbn_gb_fidelity_practical_wireless_jan_1969_page_724.png
Practical Wireless Jan 1969, Page 725tbn_gb_fidelity_practical_wireless_jan_1969_page_725.png
Practical Wireless Aug1981, Page 18tbn_gb_fidelity_practical_wireless_aug1981_page_18.jpg
Practical Wireless Sep 1981, Page 59tbn_gb_fidelity_practical_wireless_sep_1981_page_59.jpg
Tape Recording UK Aug 1966, Page 266tbn_gb_fidelity_tape_recording_uk_aug_1966_page_266.jpg
Radio & Electronics Constructor Jun 1981, Page 632tbn_gb_fidelity_radio_electronics_constructor_jun_1981_page_632.jpg
Tape Recording UK Oct 1966, Page 5tbn_gb_fidelity_tape_recording_uk_oct_1966_page_5.jpg

  

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