Transistor radio manufacturers in Hong Kong

In 1963 Hong Kong exported 2,550,000 transistor radios, and increase of 1,150,000 from 1962. Here are a few of the many companies involved in this business.

Please contact the website if you can provide further information about the companies mentioned below or about other companies not included.

Thanks to IDJ for supplying the Aero Electronics, Atlas and International Electronics adverts.

Aero Electronics
Brand Names: Herald

Aero Electronics-1963 advert transistor radio2 IDJ

1963 Courtesy: IDJ

Atlas Electronics Corporation (環球電子)

York Lo: In May 1962, [Peter HT] Woo incorporated Atlas Electronics Corporation (環球電子) and consolidated his operations under the Atlas name.
By 1963 Atlas had 400 workers and was churning out 80000 six transistor radios per month with average 90 day delivery to New York.
By 1967, Atlas was producing 250,000 radios a month according to the Trade Bulletin published by the HK Department of Industry and Commerce. The firm was so successful that it went public in 1969 on the newly formed Far East Stock Exchange with Woo as its chairman, becoming the first electronics company listed in the Hong Kong stock market.

See: Peter H.T. Woo – Father of the Hong Kong Electronics Industry

Atlas Electronics-advert-1964 IDJ

1964 Courtesy: IDJ

Champagne Engineering Corporation Ltd (香賓電業有限公司)

York Lo: In March 1958, [Peter HT Woo] incorporated Champagne Engineering Corporation Ltd (香賓電業有限公司) and began assembling transistor radios in Hong Kong using Japanese transistors, making Champagne the first electronics firm in Hong Kong.

See: Peter H.T. Woo – Father of the Hong Kong Electronics Industry

International Electronics (Division of International Service Corporation Ltd)
Brand Names: Fiesta and Kent

International Service Corporation-1963 advert transistor radio from IDJ

1963 Courtesy: IDJ

Kendy Enterprise

While the general public in HK might be familiar with Andrew Yuen Wai-man (阮偉文) from the society/entertainment pages, most are probably less familiar with his father Jack Samuel Yuen (阮家傑), a pioneer of the HK electronics industry who established Kendy Enterprise, one of the early manufacturers of transistor radios in the 1960s and built Dayton Industrial with the help of his wife and children into one of the world’s leading OEM manufacturers of micro-electronic products such as bicycle meters, heart rate monitors, ABC watches, sensors and parts for smartphones over the past half a century.
The couple returned to Hong Kong in 1958 and founded Kendy Enterprise which was one of the first electronics factories in HK and began making 6-transistor radios in 1962 under its own “Kendy” brand.

York Lo: From Transistor Radios to Bicycle Meters: the Yuen family and Kendy Enterprise (堅力實業) and Dayton Industrial (達騰工業)

Zephyr Radio Company

Brand Name: Londale
See: http://www.jamesbutters.com/londale930.htm

This article was first posted on 28th September 2015.

See: http://www.jamesbutters.com/londale930.htm

Related Indhhk articles:

  1. An Emerging Industry: Hong Kong’s transistor radios, 1962 Government trade bulletin
  2. The Electronics Industry of Hong Kong: an analysis of its growth 1959-1969

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