Friends Of Roberts SPOTLIGHT: E. B. Marsh
Established in 1930 by brothers, Edward and Harry Marsh, E. B. Marsh is a family run business based in Sturminster Newton and Sherborne, in the Heart of rural Dorset. Originally selling cars, bikes and charging accumulators, E.B. Marsh is now run by Sarah Palmer, Edward’s granddaughter, and specialises in selling an extensive range of electrical appliances whilst providing outstanding customer advice and service.
The company motto continues to be ‘For Service Beyond The Sale’ and being at the heart of their community with their staff always helping where they can, E. B. Marsh have always embraced the very latest electrical products to bring to their customers.
Have your family always loved all things audio?
Absolutely! My father always loved everything Radio and HiFi and was often out sounding the local dances in the 1940’s (where he met my mother) and outside broadcasting at fetes. He gave me my love of Motown. My father took over E. B. Marsh in the 1970’s and then I started in 1993.
Take us behind the scenes with Roberts?
I believe we started stocking Roberts from the 1960’s. We often have customers coming in telling us their stories of how long they’ve had their Roberts radios which is so lovely to hear and customers coming in asking for a Roberts today which is great to see. Reliability is something that comes up time and time again with the brand which is why we’ve continued stocking it. I have a few old ones in my Marsh’s Museum which have always been there.
Customers that have always had a Roberts are now coming back for the updated DAB+ and Bluetooth or Internet Radios but they still love the old familiar style, with great sound quality. We’ve seen a flurry recently with people buying for Christmas presents but our customers just love listening to radio so we do see a lot of sales for personal use in general throughout the year and sometimes one for each room in the house and the shed!
Do you have any firm favourites across the range?
There really doesn’t seem to be one favourite, they all seem to sell well. In the last year we’ve sold everything across the range in every single colour from the Ramblers and the Revivals to the more basic Play 10 and 11… we stock it all!
What are you listening to at the moment?
My kids hate it but I like listening to the radio, especially Radio 2. I love hearing new artists and songs. I like listening to a wide range. My eldest son is now studying Music production & Sound Design at university - so the love of music lives on to another generation!