Paul Henne’s electronics store unplugs after 50 years

Like many small family-owned electronics stores across the United States, Henne’s fought revenue struggles in recent years, according to owner Dave Henne.

“Business is awful,” Henne said. “It’s been awful since the recession hit, and it never came back,” despite the company’s hopes.

The store was known for its personal touch, with staff fielding questions and helping customers who brought in items for repair. Henne’s could also order in specialty products and parts.

“We had a lot of steady customers over the years. It was great working with local people,” Henne said.

The shop traces back to 1964, when Dave’s father, Paul, set up his store in the building Weatherly Printing occupies today. Shortly after, Henne’s shuffled over to its current spot at nearby 1116 12th Ave.

The family store became a Radioshack dealer in the early 1970s. It stayed that way until Henne’s separated from the company in 2015, following the chain’s first filing for bankruptcy. (Radioshack filed for bankruptcy again in March.)

Electronics as a business has changed drastically, and Henne said the new focus on phones and computers doesn’t appeal to him as much as televisions and stereo systems.

The Heights store kept operating under the Paul Henne’s name for a few years after its breakup with Radioshack, but waning business led to its end, according to Dave.

Henne and Jim Woods make up the entire store staff. Signs reading “everything must go” have been posted on the store’s front display windows.

Inside, some stretches of the walls that products used to adorn are now bare. But an array of goods, from odds and ends to a sophisticated remote-controlled spider, remain.

After the store closes, Dave will still be available for calls about repairs and other business before he takes a summer vacation.

It will be the first time since the 1980s that he took more than two weeks from his job at the store, he explained.

A new future

Henne’s may be closing, but options are still open for the iconic blue building it called home for decades.

About a month ago, Steffen Lunding of Hood River bought the property, located on 12th in the center of the Heights.

Lunding, a carpenter by trade, remodels old sites, such as the historic Butler Bank Building on Oak Street, which became an events space and gallery/winery.

Lunding said he isn’t certain about specifics for the Henne’s building yet, but he plans to fix up the structure and search for a new retail tenant.

“We’re going to polish up the old building (and) show it some love,” Lunding said.

He explained that he owns property downtown, but the 12th Avenue location will mark his first commercial venture in the Heights.

“I’m excited about being part of the neighborhood,” Lunding said.