Moorgate Acoustics was founded in by Keith Hobson in 1981 with the aim of helping discriminating customers get better sound at home. Keith was an engineer by trade who's passion for music led to a keen interest in Hi-fi as the best means to appreciate it.

Frustrated by the relatively poor standards of service available in South Yorkshire, Keith's redundancy from Sound 70's on Barclay Precinct afforded him the opportunity to put his own ideas into practice and start Moorgate Acoustics. His experiences as a customer enabled him to see things from a different stand-point and introduce facilities and services that he'd only dreamed of when he started out. Starting from scratch, he chose to stock only those products which offered the best sound. Next he added listening rooms, where people could actually listen to the equipment of their choice. This seems obvious now but 28 years ago Moorgate was one of the first shops to offer proper demonstration. Finally he developed the sort of "no-quibble" back-up service that he knew customers deserved.

Sound has always been critical at Moorgate Acoustics. Making the best sound drives each of us and it is a passion that we share with many of our customers.

In 1988, Moorgate was invited to join BADA (The British Audio Dealers Association), exceeding the high standards that it sets for members. Membership enabled Moorgate to offer even better service and also to gain valuable insight into future trends.

Keith found out early on that good staff are critical to the business, so instead of employing trained sales people or those who had worked in other Hi-fi shops, he selected people with a keen interest in music and an enthusiasm for great sound. Although he learned the business side in order to survive, Keith and each of our staff are enthusiasts and music lovers first and foremost.

We are in the business to make money but you'd be surprised to learn that margin's are higher on cheaper equipment, where huge quantities can be purchased. This is why Richer Sounds are the UK's most profitable hi-fi company, despite selling the cheapest equipment.

Today
Today we know that only thrilled customers are happy to recommend us to their friends as well as returning for future purchases. Satisfied customers have built our business and enabled it to grow.

Over the years we've seen levels of performance improve dramatically and value for money head the same way too. The range of equipment that we offer for sale now truly offers superb all-round performance, build quality and reliability. Manufacturers investing in state-of-the-art equipment know that within 5 years that precious technology will be available for those purchasing their budget equipment.

As a result of Keith's hard work, we are now recognized as one of the twenty best Hi-fi shops in the UK. This does not mean we are complacent; in fact quite the reverse. In order to ensure we stay one step ahead of our competition, we constantly strive to improve all aspects of our facilities, product and service. This means that when we are not busy serving our customers, we are in the listening room selecting new products to add to our selection. We figure that if our listening room is good enough to help our customer choose what to buy, it's good enough for us to select the stock we supply.

Our Stocking Policy
Put simply we stock the sort of equipment we would buy ourselves. Our selection process involves listening in our demo room, exactly in the same way that our customers do. We always listen to a component in a system that is relative to it's real value. We don't think there's much use listening to £200 speakers with a £2,000 amplifier, for instance (like the Hi-fi Magazines do). Instead we'd listen to the speakers with a good budget amp/CD and sensibly priced cables - just the sort of system that they were intended to be used with. In short we are using the same principles that our customers make prior to a purchase.

The Future
My name is Paul Hobson and I'm Keith's son. I joined the company 27 years ago, learning all I know from my father and the excellent people who have worked for us over the years. Keith is semi-retired now but still active in the running of the company and his experience and enthusiasm continue to win new customers and friends. You will see him at most of our musical evenings.

The internet has enabled us to reach customers near and far and keep in touch with them more easily. Our business is sometimes like a community of people who all share our passion for music.

Despite growth and a great many changes, the company still stands by Keith's original goal of helping discriminating people get great sound at home. Our commitment is to our customers first and in order to keep this commitment we will strive to maintain the highest standards in all we do.

Finding the right shop is still the best way to get a good system and everything we do is designed to aid you get the system of your dreams. In a market led by advancing technology and a great deal of change, it is our high standards that remain unchanged and underpin everything we do.

Take the time to visit us and find out how we can get the very best from music and movies in your home. You'll find that all of us share Keith's enthusiasm for product and service and that we are willing to do everything in our power to help you.

Paul Hobson
Paul Cooper
Adrian Cox
David Gillott