- For the Broadway musical and film, see The Wiz.
| The Wiz | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Type | Electronics |
| Founded | 1977 (as electronics retailer, defunct 2003) 2004 (as an online retailer owned by P.C. Richard) |
| Headquarters | New York City, New York |
| Industry | Retail |
| Products | Computers, televisions, VCRs, and DVD players |
| Slogan | Nobody Beats The Wiz |
| Website | http://www.thewiz.com |
The Wiz was the name of a chain of electronic stores in the northeastern United States, primarily in New York and New Jersey. The chain, which was founded by Lawrence Jemal in New York City in 1977, was later officially named by its primary advertising slogan, Nobody Beats The Wiz. During the early-to-mid 1990s Nobody Beats The Wiz was a major sponsor for all local NY sporting events, including the Knicks, Rangers, Yankees, Mets, Nets, and Devils. They did very heavy TV advertising during all of the sporting events. In 1998, Cablevision bought the chain and dropped the slogan, used extensively in the 1980s and 90s. The acquisition came shortly after the chain filed for bankruptcy. Founder Lawrence Jemal was intensely private and financial performance data was a closely guarded secret until the company was purchased by Cablevision. The Wiz was notorious for paying vendors very slowly, and in its later years found it very difficult to secure products on credit. At the chain's peak, it operated more than 75 stores in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts. At one time, it also operated music-only stores in Maryland and the Washington, D.C. area. The chain closed permanently in 2003. According to a Stereophile Magazine article from February 16, 2003, a Cablevision press release stated: "Continuing to operate the stores is no longer a viable option for Cablevision as business conditions at the retailer eroded due to a weakened retail economy and other factors." Once The Wiz closed, Lawrence Jemal opened a new electronics chain, The Zone, in a number of former Wiz locations. The new chain, which heavily mentioned that it was from the founder of The Wiz, went out of business less than two years later. The closing of The Wiz leaves P.C. Richard & Son and J&R as the region's only major local electronics stores, with most of the market now dominated by national chains Circuit City and Best Buy. P.C. Richard currently operates TheWiz.com, an online marketplace which uses the old Nobody Beats The Wiz logo.
Locations
Norwalk, Connecticut - (Now Best Buy) Milford, Connecticut - (Closed in the late 1990s and was vacant. Became a Kitchen Etc... and is now a Steve & Barry's) Staten Island, New York - (Closed in the late 1990s. Now converted into a restaurant.) Monmouth Mall, Eatontown, New Jersey - (Closed in 2000. Now converted into a Burlington Coat Factory) Mercer Mall, 3345 US Route 1, Lawrenceville, New Jersey (Closed in 2002. Now a strip mall with a restaurant) Garden State Plaza, Paramus, New Jersey - (Now Best Buy) Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, New York - (Now Commerce Bank.)
Bay Ridge Brooklyn now a Foot Locker Flushing, Queens, New York- (Now Joe Best burger and ATT store.) Menlo Park Mall, Edison, New Jersey - (Closed in 2003. It became a local retail store that was closed shortly after it opened, now a Club Monaco store.) Kings Plaza, Brooklyn, New York - (Now Sleepys and an unused building.) Crossgates Mall, Albany, New York- (Closed in 1997 Now converted into a Burlington Coat Factory) Lake Grove, New York- (Now Petco) Rego Park, Flushing, NY (Now local discount store). Gardiner Manor Plaza Bayshore, NY (Now a Linens & Things) Gateway Plaza, Parlin, NJ (Closed in 2000, now a Bayshore Fitness Center). Holmdel Commons, Holmdel, NJ (Closed in 2003, and store still stands empty). Roxbury Mall, Roxbury, NJ - (Now an Electronics Expo store). Many locations throughout New York and New Jersey
Pop culture references
The Wiz has also been featured as a pop culture reference, especially in the New York City area. The phrase Nobody Beats The Wiz became popular when Joe Namath started doing commercials for the store. Other sports legends from New York that they would use in commercials included Phil Simms and Boomer Esiason.
- Ben Cheever recounts his time working for The Wiz in his book Selling Ben Cheever.
- In The Junk Mail episode of the 1990s sitcom Seinfeld, Elaine becomes unknowingly infatuated with "The Wiz," a man she soon realizes was the fictional pitchman for The Wiz chain. (The retailer never employed the use of such a character, which more closely resembles the TV ads for Crazy Eddie that had been a fixture in New York until that chain's demise in the late 1980s.)
- The store was depicted in the 2005 film version of RENT. The main characters huddle around a storefront window to watch the Times Square Ball drop on New Year's Day.
- The chain's jingle was the inspiration for rapper Biz Markie's hit song, Nobody Beats the Biz, off his 1988 release, Goin' Off.
- "Nobody Beats the Wiz" was also used by ESPN anchor Tony Reali during the May 5th 2006 episode of "Around the Horn." The term was in reference to the NBA's Washington Wizards, who were going to face the Cleveland Cavaliers in a pivotal Game 6 that night.
- The Wiz was mentioned in the 1988 hit It Takes Two by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock (the lyrics: "... On stage or on record, Go to The Wiz and select it ...").
- The Kansas City Wiz Major League Soccer team was asked by The Wiz to change their name following their inaugural 1996 season. The team is now known as the Kansas City Wizards. [1]
- In the song Enojoy Da Ride, off Redman's album Malpractice, Method Man raps, "I can't be defeated like "Nobody Beats the Wiz"."
- In the movie Hannibal, Mason Verger is quoted as saying, "I have immunity from the risen Jesus. And nobody beats the riz!" Verger makes a similar reference in the novel of the same name.
- In The Simpsons The First Church of Springfield under the Reverend Timothy Lovejoy runs a thrift shop where cheap clothing can be bought. Its motto is “Nobody beats the Rev.”
