Back in the late 1970s and early 80s, Newtown resident Sue Goldberg would commute over to Danbury to a job at Read’s Department Store. And while she loved the hustle and bustle of retail, working in a huge big box operation just didn’t suit her.

Around the same time, husband Hugh, an electronics engineer working for RCA, was looking to purchase an early generation computer.

That’s when they learned about an opportunity that would fulfill her passion for customer service and his talent for working with electronics. So they took Ethel and Phil Herbert (“Effie” and “Hoppy”) up on the offer to purchase their small Monroe RadioShack store on busy Route 25.

That was the beginning of a career for the couple that would span 33 years and find them assisting three generations of loyal local customers. Many of those customers have been returning in recent weeks, after learning Newtown’s RadioShack would be closing for good on Sunday, October 25.

While Hugh was the electronics guy — typical of the type of customer you’d likely find puttering around the CB radios, hi-fi stereos and racks of switches, transistors and batteries a typical RadioShack carried in the day — it was Sue who ultimately became the store’s owner.

As a result, she became something of a pioneer, running the only independently owned Radio Shack at the time, and remaining only one of two women-owned stores in the Northeast.

“A lot of my girlfriends at the time wondered what I was doing buying a RadioShack, but they were all very supportive,” Ms Goldberg recalled.

The Goldbergs’ two daughters, Michelle and Laura, also helped the fledgling electronics business succeed.

“When they got old enough they worked in the store,” Sue Goldberg said.

“But when they were younger, every year we’d take them with us to company meetings where they would get a chance to play with all the new toys the company was considering for the holidays,” Hugh Goldberg said. “So they would tell us which ones they thought we should get — and they made some pretty good choices.“

Ms Goldberg believes one of the best selling toys she ever carried was a Stuart Little remote control car, which she couldn’t keep on the shelves. And as the remote control phenomenon grew, a billboard the couple contracted on Route 25 portraying Santa Claus playing with a remote RadioShack truck sent customers into their store in droves.

“We sold every one of those trucks that year,” Mr Goldberg recalled.

Computers Take Hold

While toys remained a significant part of the Goldbergs’ merchandise line, computers and related equipment were beginning to compete for space on the Goldbergs’ shelves, as well as for customers attention.

“In the old days of the Tandy Model 3 and 4, those computers operated on cassette tapes that held the programs,” Mr Goldberg remembers. “They had 4k or 8k memories, and only 40 megabits of storage. Nobody ever dreamed that one day you could come into a RadioShack and buy 64 gigs of storage on a chip no bigger than your fingernail.”

As the 80s transitioned into the 90s, the Goldbergs watched the development of the Sand Hill Plaza as they commuted south to their Monroe store. And although there were offers to take a space there from the developer, the Goldbergs decided to stand pat — until they learned a company franchise RadioShack might be moving into Newtown.

That’s when they decided to move their RadioShack from Monroe into the space at Sand Hill Plaza where it will remain until this weekend.

During those first few years the Goldbergs were so busy, they maintained a seven day a week schedule. And customers were looking for the hottest new product, portable telephones.

“Sue got into cellphones at the earliest opportunity,” Mr Goldberg said. “We sold the original AT&T and Linx bag phones.”

“After we had sold the bag phones for a few years, customers started asking for handheld cellphones, but I was afraid at first to invest in them,” Ms Goldberg said. “I thought they were so small — how could you ever get a transmission signal?”

But a good and loyal customer eventually convinced her to shift to handheld cellphones and Ms Goldberg, as well as the entire industry, never looked back.

Loving Their Customers

The Goldbergs both say they will miss their customers more than the day-to-day chores involved with running a competitive retail store.

“We’re seeing third generation customers now — the kids coming in with their parents buying things for school projects are coming in now with kids of their own,” Ms Goldberg said. “Most of our customers came in for help — many trying to find things they didn’t really understand. We catered to folks who wanted to learn about the latest radio, or toy, or computer.”

Along the way the Goldbergs have had those favors returned, being invited to visit many of their customers at home.

“We’ve attended a number of their weddings, and sadly, some of their funerals, too,” Ms Goldberg said. “The hardest thing about closing will be leaving these people.”

“But after 25 years here, we have to move on,” Mr Goldberg added, noting the parent company’s bankruptcy “didn’t help, but it was time.”

Former customer Patti Lake was among the many who said they were sad to see RadioShack closing in Newtown.

“They are the nicest, most helpful people,” she said of the Goldbergs. “Even just going in there for the smallest item, they made you feel like you were their most important customer. I’ll miss them.”

That sentiment was echoed by former bus driver and Legislative Council member Phil Carroll.

“They were always so helpful,” he said. “It’s sad to see them go, but I hope you enjoy your retirement.”