Spec's Music

The company's first store was a 1,500-square-foot (140 m2) structure in Coral Gables, Florida, situated on South Dixie Highway on the outskirts of Miami.

Inside, the store carried a collection of big-band melodies, recorded on then-standard 78 RPM vinyl discs, and other assorted merchandise.

[3] By the 1950s, Spec's expanded their sales line to include Kodak Brownie cameras, Magnavox television sets, washing machines, and refrigerators.

In 1992, two Spec's stores were entirely destroyed by Hurricane Andrew, resulting in more than $1 million in damages for the company, and an estimated operating loss of $160,000.

To provide room for a greater emphasis on these items, the company decided to remove many of its lackluster video rental departments.

A little more than a year later in mid-1995 the company turned to the "superstore" format to try to maintain its leading position in Florida, which was being threatened by increasing competition.

However, despite the hype surrounding the grand opening of these two new stores, Spec's Music was beginning to show signs of anemic financial performance.

[9] The Puerto Rico store located in Plaza Las Américas showed the Spec's Music logo at its entrance but operated as FYE.