S.Barron & Co Ltd

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Click hA local radio, TV and white goods shop, with two branches, Barron’s also sold record players and had a record bar, selling LPs and 7″ singles in the 1950s and 60s. Stan Barron opened his first shop in Firth Park in 1952 (he seems to be fondly remembered judging from comments on local forums: “Worked for Stan Barron in record bar, lovely man, best boss you could wish for” – “Shop was great, I used it a lot. He once let me buy an album and pay for it over two weeks, no agreement just trust” – “bought my first record player from there and he gave me two free records to get started”). His son remembered the shop on a local forum: “Downstairs he had his ‘Television Theatre’. Loads of big TVs all switched on. He got the idea from the Radio Show in London. He was a bit of a character with big moustache, kids all called him Snudge ( from TV program Bootsie & Snudge). Not only did he sell records but, Tvs fridges etc. He used to have 6d in the slot TV. I was the first kid in the class who could count to 40 as I had to bag up all the 6ds before I could go out to play. I think he sold out to Radio Rentals. I worked for him at Christmas. Sold boxes of Sound of Music LPs”. Stan opened a second shop at Gleadless Townend in the early 1960s (which was next to the now closed NatWest) and later moved just across the main road to White Lane. The 201 and 855 buildings are still there near the main road at Gleadless Townend in a shopping area now strangled by traffic on the main ring road. Barron’s had 7″ card sleeves printed; “Top Twenty Always In Stock”.  The Firth Park shop, which was on the south end of a large parade of shops where the tanning rooms are (next to the library) closed in 1965 but the building is also still there. Web posts say Marti Caine worked there for a time, and Stan’s lad Keith was the actor Keith Barron.