| PRESS RELEASE: BILL CRUTCHFIELD INDUCTED INTO HALL OF FAME | |
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For Immediate Release
BILL CRUTCHFIELD INDUCTED INTO HALL OF FAME LAS VEGAS, January 7, 2001 -- Bill Crutchfield, founder and CEO of Charlottesville-based Crutchfield Corporation, was inducted Saturday night into the Dealerscope Hall of Fame. His company is the nation's leading catalog and Internet retailer of consumer electronics products. Dealerscope, a respected industry magazine, honored a small number of trailblazers who have made significant contributions to the consumer electronics business over many years. The Dealerscope awards ceremony took place during the giant Consumer Electronics Show, and top industry executives were in attendance. "With the Hall of Fame award, Dealerscope seeks to recognize Bill Crutchfield for his work and success with the evolving company that is his namesake," Dealerscope Editor In Chief Janet Pinkerton said. "Few retailers in the consumer electronics industry have kept such a steady eye on the customers' needs, while maintaining the corporate infrastructure required to meet those needs. With both his catalog business and the crutchfield.com website, Bill Crutchfield has earned the trust of both consumers and electronics manufacturers — no easy feat!" Bill Crutchfield, 58, is a native of Charlottesville, a 1965 graduate of the University of Virginia and currently serves on the University of Virginia's Board of Visitors. In 1974, Crutchfield founded Crutchfield Corporation in the basement of his mother's Charlottesville home with only $1,000 in savings. It has grown to over $200 million in annual sales and serves 3 million customers throughout the United States. In addition to its headquarters, the company operates a call center, its distribution center and a retail store in Charlottesville. The company also has a call center in Norton and a retail store in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Crutchfield was also honored by the Electronics Division of the United Jewish Appeal as its "Retailer of the Year" for 2000. He was Ernst & Young's Master Entrepreneur of the Year for Virginia in 1999. The other Dealerscope honorees for 2001 were Jim DeFranco and Charlie Ergen founders of EchoStar Communications, a leading direct broadcast satellite service with over 6,000 employees and over 4 million subscribers worldwide, and industry legend Henry Kloss, who co-invented the first acoustic suspension speaker in 1952 while at AR. Later, he helped found KLH, Advent, Kloss and Cambridge Sound Works — all innovative manufacturers of consumer electronic products. The 2001 International CES marks the Dealerscope Hall of Fame's 10th year and its first year to accept retailers into its ranks. Dealerscope's Hall of Fame award recognizes individual contributions to the consumer electronics industry. Such contributions are made in many forms. The Hall of Fame honors not only the industry's veterans, but also its innovators, the visionaries, the deal makers, those who pursue a standard of excellence and those who persevere. Founded in 1974, Crutchfield Corporation is the nation's largest direct integrated marketer (catalog, call center, and Internet) of consumer electronics products. It offers a convenient, full-service shopping destination to buyers of car and home audio/video products. Providing an unprecedented level of customer service, Crutchfield is noted for its high integrity, product expertise, and technical support. Mailed to approximately 7.5 million households, Crutchfield's catalogs include comprehensive explanations of product and technology intended to help consumers make informed buying decisions. Crutchfield was the first authorized audio/video retailer on the Internet, launching its web site, www.crutchfield.com, in the summer of 1995. ### |
 Bill Crutchfield Click here to see more publicity photos of Bill Crutchfield. |
