Ham Radio – A contact sport

In the mid to late 1990s, I predicted that some ham radio suppliers would embrace the internet as a means of selling amateur radio gear while others tried to remain purely “bricks and mortar� shops. Years later, we see some vendors that are almost exclusively internet based businesses that seem to thrive.

I caught a bit of a TV program this morning that was discussing climate change in the Antarctic. While the cause of and long term prognosis of climate change is debatable, scientists are finding that some species thrive while others perish during these changes. The same goes for ham radio stores in today’s economy.  Some will adapt, some won’t and some won’t be able to survive no matter what they do.

Here’s some recent news in the world of ham radio commerce:

Burghardt Amateur Radio Stops Selling Equipment

Burghardt’s, a 71 year old ham radio store in South Dakota, really suffered – resulting in layoffs followed by an announcement last week that they were completely exiting the ham radio equipment sales business; focusing on repairs instead.

Tokyo Hy Power HF amplifiers & SPE Expert

Array Solutions recently announced that it was beginning to carry Tokyo Hy Power HF amplifiers. This puts them back in the ham radio HF amplifier business after dropping the Italian SPE Expert 1K-FA line in 2007.  In early 2008, Colorado-based Custom RF Solutions picked up the SPE Expert business in the U.S.

Last month, Bill Leahey (K0ZL), the owner of B&B Technical Services was tragically killed in an industrial accident at work.  This tragedy left SPE Expert without a representative/distributor in North America.

DX Engineering now carries MFJ/Ameritron/Hygain

DX Engineering recently joined the many ham radio deals carrying MFJ’s products (including Ameritron ham radio amplifiers and Hygain antennas). DX Engineering (a relatively young company), has embraced the internet age model (pretty good website, great service, etc.).

Moving forward

Not every company is willing to invest in a decent/functional website, train their staff to provide great service and listen to customers as the ham radio market continues to evolve.  Sure, it’s a challenge: notoriously cheap customers, a tight economy, competition from eBay, expensive shows to attend (ie Dayton) vs great criticism if you’re not there, …  There are a lot of things that could go wrong. 

I’ve mentioned both DX Engineering and Array Solutions in the past as top notch internet-based amateur radio stores. They seem to be willing to adapt to the market, and serve their customers well. There are others that could be in this category: adapting well to the changing market.

Then there are those, like Burghardt… facing long odds and being challenged on multiple fronts. They’re in South Dakota for Pete’s sake.

Finally, there’s a group of companies who, it seems to me, could prosper and grow if they begin to make some changes. Is your “local� ham radio candy store nothing more than a place with overpriced stuff… no redeeming qualities apart from being local. Do you go there to poke buttons and push knobs and then buy your rig elsewhere? Are they unwilling to modernize their website and work with vendors & manage inventory to offer competitive prices?

Unfortunately, not every ham radio company will survive the challenges ahead. Let’s hope consumers don’t suffer as a result.