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Alba was a British
Following the demise of the original company, the Alba name was bought in 1982 by Harvard International.
In 1987, Harvard International renamed itself Alba plc and was floated on the
Alba
at Argos.co.uk Electronics companies of the United Kingdom Electronics industry in London British brands
Alba was a British consumer electronics
Consumer electronics or home electronics are Electronics, electronic (Analogue electronics, analog or digital electronics, digital) equipment intended for everyday use, typically in private homes. Consumer electronics include devices used for ...
brand used for budget electronics.
Established in 1917, Alba acquired its rival Bush in 1988, and was bought by the Home Retail Group, the parent company of the retailer Argos in 2008, who in turn was taken over by J Sainsbury plc in 2016. Products bearing the brand name were primarily sold at Argos, and to a lesser extent at Sainsbury's. The Alba brand was quietly dropped by Sainsbury's in 2022 and replaced by its more upmarket sister brand Bush, which has a similar history.
History
Original A.J. Balcombe / Alba company
The name ''Alba'' originated as a trademark used on radio and television produced by A.J. Balcombe Ltd. The company was formed in 1917 or 1918 by Alfred Balcombe. Alba began by manufacturing radio sets from 1922. In the 1960s they became ''Alba Group'', and made only low-cost consumer products. Alba went intoreceivership
In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
in June 1982. During that time, it was a significant contributor to the development of the British radio & TV industry.
Under Harvard International
Following the demise of the original company, the Alba name was bought in 1982 by Harvard International.
In 1987, Harvard International renamed itself Alba plc and was floated on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pa ...
under its new name. Alba plc bought Bush in 1988, followed by Goodmans
Goodmans LLP is a Canadian corporate law firm. First established in Toronto in 1917 by David Bertram Goodman, Goodmans LLP now has approximately 200 lawyers. The firm acts for Canada's largest corporations, financial institutions and multination ...
in 1994.
Alba also produced electronic products under licence for other companies or individuals, including Antony Worrall Thompson, Cable and Wireless, Carl Lewis
Frederick Carlton Lewis (born July 1, 1961) is an American former track and field athlete who won nine Olympic gold medals, one Olympic silver medal, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. His career spanned from 1979 to 19 ...
, JCB
JCB may refer to:
* JCB (company), a British manufacturer of heavy industrial and agricultural vehicles
* JCB Co., Ltd., originally Japan Credit Bureau, a credit card company based in Tokyo, Japan
* JCB Prize, a literary award sponsored by the c ...
, Ministry of Sound
Ministry of Sound or Ministry of Sound Group is a multimedia entertainment business based in London with a nightclub, shared workspace and private members' club, worldwide events operation, music publishing business and fitness studio.
J ...
, Nicky Clarke and NTL.
The company sold its share of the Grundig
Grundig (; ) is a German consumer electronics manufacturer owned by the Turkish Arçelik A.Ş., the white goods (major appliance) manufacturer of Turkish conglomerate Koç Holding. The company made domestic appliances and personal-care pro ...
brand for £25.5m in December 2007, although it retained the UK distribution rights until 2010.
Acquisition by Home Retail Group
In November 2008, the Alba and Bush names were purchased by Home Retail Group, the parent company ofHomebase
Homebase is a British home improvement retailer and garden centre with stores across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Founded by Sainsbury's and GB-Inno-BM in 1979, the company was owned by Home Retail Group from October 2006, u ...
and Argos, for £15.25 million. As a result, Alba Group (the former owner) reverted to its previous name, Harvard International, the following year.
Purchase by Sainsbury's
In September 2016, the Britishsupermarket
A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more lim ...
chain Sainsbury's
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company w ...
completed its acquisition of Home Retail Group, bringing Argos, along with the Alba and Bush brands, under its ownership.
The Alba brand was quietly dropped by Sainsbury's in 2022 and replaced by its more upmarket sister brand Bush, which has a similar history.
References
External links
{{Commons category, Alba (electronics brand)Alba
at Argos.co.uk Electronics companies of the United Kingdom Electronics industry in London British brands