Adray's

Adray's (Orange)

Industry	Retail
Founded	1967 (1967)
Founders	Andy Adray Eddie Aladray
Defunct	December 1998 (1998-12)
Fate	Bankruptcy
Headquarters	Orange, California , United States
Number of locations	1
Key people	Lou Adray (owner and president)
Number of employees	30 (1997)

Adray's (Van Nuys)

Industry	Retail
Founded	1976 (1976)
Founder	Richard Adray
Defunct	1996 (1996)
Fate	Closure of all retail outlets
Headquarters	Van Nuys, California , United States
Number of locations	10 (peak, summer 1996) 5 (at closure fall 1996)
Key people	Isaac Hakim (CEO)
Parent	Adry-Mart Inc. (1979–1996)

Adray's referred to two separate appliance and electronics retailers located in Southern California—one a single store, the other a multi-location chain. The independent outlet situated at 1809 W. Chapman Avenue in the Orange, California area had been under full ownership of Lou Adray since 1971, after he acquired the shares from its original proprietors, his brother Andy and cousin Eddie Aladray. Upon its shutdown in 1998, the Los Angeles Times characterized this store as an "institution". The other entity, operating as a chain under the same brand but incorporated as Adry-Mart Inc., was managed by Lou’s relatives and operated up to ten stores across Los Angeles and Ventura Counties.

History

During the late 1960s, four distinct appliance and electronics businesses named Adray's existed across the United States—three in Southern California and one in Dearborn, Michigan—each managed by one of four brothers: Mike, Andy, Sam, and Lou Adray. The earliest was established by Mike in Michigan in 1955. Andy launched a store in Los Angeles in 1965, followed by Sam opening one in Van Nuys a year later. In 1967, a store was inaugurated in Orange, initially co-owned by Andy and their cousin Eddie Aladray. When Lou relocated to Southern California in 1968, he purchased Andy’s stake in the Orange store and became its sole proprietor by acquiring Eddie’s share in 1971.

Initially, the three California locations collaborated by pooling their purchasing power with suppliers and honoring each other's customer returns or exchanges. However, Sam closed his Van Nuys store in 1970, followed by Andy shutting down his Los Angeles location in 1974, leaving Lou’s Orange store as the sole remaining Adray's outlet in California.

This situation persisted until 1976 when Lou assisted Richard, Andy’s son, in establishing his own store named Adray's in Van Nuys that also specialized in appliances and electronics. Although Lou did not hold ownership in this new venture, he supported Richard by providing credit guarantees during its early stages.

In 1979, Richard sold his business to investors who formed Adry-Mart Inc. While these new owners initially declared an intention to discontinue using the Adray's name, the final agreement granted them rights to utilize it within northern Los Angeles County and areas further north.

Lou became aware of Adry-Mart’s plans to continue operating under the Adray's brand only after the sale concluded. This discovery prompted Richard to file a lawsuit against Adry-Mart in 1987 for allegedly breaching contract terms by advertising outside their permitted territory into southern Los Angeles County. The dispute was resolved by 1990. Subsequently, a legal case between Lou and Adry-Mart concluded in 1992 favoring Adry-Mart but imposed defined market boundaries restricting advertising beyond those zones.

An appeal overturned the 1992 ruling in 1994; however, plans for a retrial were abandoned in 1997 when both parties reached a settlement following Adry-Mart’s cessation of retail operations.

Lou Adray–operated store

Lou Adray, originally named Lottfie (born Lutfie) in 1933 in Dearborn, Michigan, was the son of parents recorded in census data as immigrants from "Syria" (a region that included present-day Lebanon at the time). He passed away in 2017 at his residence in Anaheim Hills.

The departments within Adray's (Orange) featured a selection of major appliances, photographic equipment, televisions and video devices, office machinery, stereos, and housewares. The store emphasized keeping operational costs low by limiting display areas, reserving showroom space primarily for certain televisions and large appliances. The business ceased operations suddenly in December 1998 due to bankruptcy. By that period, competitors such as The Good Guys and Circuit City had already established stores in Orange.

Adry-Mart–managed chain

A separate branch of the Adray family managed another Adray's retail chain, with Isaac Hakim serving as CEO in 1996. Based in Van Nuys, Adry-Mart Inc. operated this chain across Los Angeles and Ventura counties, marking an 18-year dispute between different family factions. Store locations under Adry-Mart included Canoga Park, Lakewood, Torrance, Van Nuys, Ventura, a Miracle Mile location at 5575 Wilshire Blvd., and a West Los Angeles outlet at 11201 W. Pico. In mid-1996, the Adry-Mart chain closed half of its ten stores due to pressure from competitors like The Good Guys and Circuit City and fully shut down the remaining stores by fall of the same year.

Legal dispute

In 1997, Lou Adray secured exclusive rights to the Adray's name following a legal settlement with Adry-Mart. This agreement also granted Lou Adray ownership of Adry-Mart's customer database as part of the resolution.

External links

• Image depicting Adray's location at 5575 Wilshire Blvd., Miracle Mile, Los Angeles