Business celebrates 70 years
Well-known Blairgowrie company WM Coupar celebrated its 70th anniversary in business in 2017.
Founded in 1947 by William “Will” Coupar, WM Coupar’s is one of east Perthshire’s longest established businesses, continuing under the stewardship of a third generation of the Coupar family.
Will Coupar decided to start out on his own after a number of years working as an electrician with J MacKersie in Dundee and then 23 years with Grassicks in Blairgowrie.
He opened his first store at 24 Wellmeadow, currently occupied by Davidsons the chemist.
The company initially focused on electrical contracting and steady growth saw it eventually employ over 15 tradesman and apprentices who wired almost all the housing schemes that were being built at the time by the local authorities in Blairgowrie and Rattray.
During this period Will and his wife Emily also began the retail side of their operation with washing machines, refrigerators, radios and record players among their most popular items.
In the early fifties, television arrived in the area and although offering only one channel, it very quickly became a must-have item.
In 1953 the shop moved to bigger premises at its current site on the other side of the Wellmeadow.
1953 also saw Will’s son Moir join the company. After completing his apprenticeship in Dundee and then national service, Moir joined the ranks of Coupar’s radio engineers.
As the years passed, Moir’s stewardship saw Coupar’s retail operation expand, to eventually include premises in Dundee then Perth.
During this period, Coupar’s became a founding member of an independent Scottish buying group which has now grown in size and stature to become Euronics - one of Europe’s most powerful electrical retail organisations, allowing smaller companies like WM Coupar’s to offer very competitive retail prices to their customers.
Alan Coupar is the third generation of Coupar to be involved in the business.
He said: “WM Coupar’s has been advising the people of Perthshire through many of the technological explosions during the past few decades - microwave, video, DVD, satellite, plasma and digital television to name just a few.
“The fact that the third generation of the family continues to do so, despite the fiercest of competition, is proof that knowledge and good old-fashioned customer care is as popular with customers now as it was back in 1947.”