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Ad Choices. Unsubscribe at any time. Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook. November 11, - pm November 11, - pm. By Richard N. November 11, - am November 11, - am. November 10, - pm November 10, - pm. November 10, - pm November 11, - am. Circa rappelling event in downtown Las Vegas abruptly canceled. US consumer prices soared 6. November 10, - am November 10, - am. Prices for U. Wall-unit furniture was among the product categories added. It had four auto sound rooms, five home-theater rooms, and at least 45 big-screen TVs.
An in-house service department accommodated all products sold by Ultimate except computers covered by a third-party service contract and included repairs either under warranty or out of warranty. During and Ultimate Electronics moved its two warehouses near Stapleton International Airport, its Wheat Ridge administrative offices, and its Thornton store to the abandoned acre site of a former Thornton drive-in theater. The latter, which opened in April , had five audio demonstration rooms, three home theaters, two cars on the showroom floor displaying the latest in mobile-audio technology, and a children's play area named "Kid City.
For the Colorado Rockies, the expansion major league baseball team that began playing in Denver in , Ultimate Electronics sponsored an advertising display in the ballpark and player appearances. Popular manager Don Baylor became a spokesperson for the chain. In , and again in , the company ran commercial spots of Baylor to promote its Mitsubishi television products. A decrease of comparable-store sales of 2 percent in compared with a 29 percent gain for such stores in was attributed to a sluggish retail environment, increased competition in the company's markets, and the opening of new stores within markets the company already served.
Ultimate Electronics adopted a shareholder rights plan in to discourage the possibility of a hostile takeover. The Pearse family owned about 46 percent of the stock in By early Ultimate Electronics was operating 18 stores in six states. Like Ultimate, Audio King was a retailer specializing in the middle to upper end of the consumer electronics market.
It also owned Fast Trak Inc. Leading the newly enlarged company was Pearse, who remained chairman, and J. During , six of the Audio King stores were remodeled. Two of them were converted to the larger Ultimate Electronics format. Late in the year, the company shifted its merchandise mix. It got rid of most of its personal computer lines, which were generating little in the way of profits, in favor of an increased emphasis on such high-end products as high-definition television sets, DVD players, digital camcorders, and home theater systems.
This overhaul paid immediate dividends. Through the second quarter of , Ultimate Electronics enjoyed six consecutive quarters of same-store sales growth between 13 percent and 20 percent. In July Ultimate expanded into Arizona via the opening of two stores in the Phoenix area.
The proceeds also were used to pay down debt. Ultimate Electronics launched an aggressive expansion program during By January the company had more than doubled in size, opening five new stores in , ten in , twelve in , and seven in In addition to the aforementioned Phoenix, new markets established during this period were Oklahoma City, St. The timing for this expansion was inauspicious.
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