Eye-catching window display highlights expansion by Rugby business

But the former home of Niki-Lu’s Boots and Shoes in Bank Street didn’t stay silent for long as it presented an opportunity for next-door neighbour Carvells to extend its premises and expand its range.

The electrical retailer used to be in number 9 in the past and has made a comeback to be able to offer a wide selection of range cookers and American fridge freezers.

It represents another positive step by a business which has been at the heart of the town’s life since it started in 1928.

Over the decades it has embraced a variety of products beyond the electrical appliances current shoppers will think of – it had, for example, a record department, sold toys and also sold cycles, the original focus of the business.

No doubt a rare sight currently is the yellow drinks fridge in the window display to highlight the new department.

The eye-catching design is a collaboration that has seen Smeg produce a novel item in the style of the Fiat 500 and while this is very much in town for marketing purposes, it is part of a range that is a real thing and has been on sale for a cool £9,999.

More importantly, the extra space has enabled shoppers to get a closer look at a selection of big appliances, right here in the town centre, as Carvells continues to defy the doom-mongers who say such items are the stuff of out-of-town shopping or the internet.

The fine reputation and heritage has seen the name carry on even after the Carvell family sold the business to a fellow family firm, Lords Electrical of Leicester – which has 90 years of its own history.

Like many other independents, Carvells and Lords are part of the Euronics network that allows the businesses to come together to have the buying power to secure competitive prices.

And their continuing success means Bank Street remains a fine mix of independent businesses, with a variety of fascinating buildings and every shop occupied.

While the recent expansion does not coincide with a major anniversary – it’s 95 this years, which is still impressive – the evolution of its core business can be found in the special supplements produced by the Advertiser group for the golden and diamond jubilees, in 1978 and 1988, respectively.

They chart the history of the business and its bases in the town, together with a fascinating reflection of changing times.

A photo looks back to 1955 when the record department which was previously part of Carvells at number 9, was thronged with crowds eager to meet one of the top chart stars of the day.

Though Ruby Murray is best remembered now for her adoption into Cockney rhyming slang, back then she was a hugely popular singer and had five songs in the top 20 at the time of her visit.

The stories are well known of The Rolling Stones playing in town but they weren’t as famous then as Ruby Murray was when she called in to Carvells.

The supplements also highlight how what is already old technology was nervously adopted by Rugby shoppers.

The diamond jubilee feature of August 1988 recalls how the biggest growth area between the two supplements had been video recorders.

It says: “John Carvell can remember selling the shop’s very first video in August 1978 but was to sell only another nine that year.

"Since then about 2,600 have passed through Carvells and into the homes of local people and the easy-to-operate equipment is now so sophisticated that you can tape your eight favourite programmes at home while you soak up the sun on a fortnight’s holiday.”

It then goes onto highlight another old favourite, Teletext, a wonder in the pre-internet age: “About 60 per cent of people buying new TV sets today plump for a Teletext model, which has an information service second to none.

"The continually updated service gives information about anything from weather conditions, traffic jams and sports results, to stocks and shares, TV programmes and the latest news.”

Shop general manager Eric Capell was quoted as saying that those without Teletext didn’t know what thy were missing: “It can be used as an educational toy as well, as Teletext includes children’s word search games and anagrams.

"The sports results service is outstanding as there is minute-by-minutes coverage of even the lesser-known sports.”

On the subject of games, the earlier supplement highlighted how the ‘wasted’ time when televisions were not in use was increasingly being used by those with, ‘one of the widening range of tv games’.

The article explains: “First came the simple ball game, which provided four variations, tennis, football, squash and a sport sometimes called pelota.

"As things improved the equipment began to allow variations in bat sizes, ball speed and the angle of trajectory.

“The latest thing is a games unit which either has a built-in ‘logic facility’ or takes in pre-recorded games in the form of cassettes or cartridges.”

While we didn’t spot an advert for these Xbox forerunners, a quick return to the 1988 edition revealed a video recorder was a luxury item – at £399.95 it cost more than many of the cars driven by Advertiser reporters of the time…

But while our old bangers often surprised us by getting to Dunchurch Parish Council and back without breaking down, the Sharp video in question had a five-year guarantee, backed up by the customer service and determination to get the best price for Rugby customers that remain the hallmark of the new-look, extended Carvells of today.