'Options by Hoover' Turbopower - vintagerepairer?

[turbomaster1984]

Hi there

This week I got a phonecall from the owner of a repair shop whom Ive known for some years asking if I would like to go and look through his store room and take any spares we wanted. Shelves of obsolete spares and cleaners along with a load of obsolete washer parts we came away with and some unusual things mainly a bag housing for a Turbopower we never knew existed.

The cleaner is badged. as 'Options by Hoover' and is a burgundy/purple/aubergine colour. The Options part screams department store but I could be wrong. I just have a haunch given the colour and font used it may be Allders or House of Frazer....

I have no idea for sure though.

I would divulge more info incase it is a regional shop but the last thing I need is someone going after this shop and damaging the hard work we have done by building a relationship to be allowed free roaming in his store room.

Benny have you come across this branding before - the hoover service manuals dont recognise it and I cant pin point its colour although its definitely not in the colour list the service manuals show.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

Good for you!

It's great when you have a great rapport like that with a vac shop. Right next door to my studio in the Philly area was an old vac/sewing machine shop.   I'd go in there often.  There would be things I'd buy.  Sometimes,  he'd say, "I'm getting a dumpster soon.  Go downstairs.  If there is ANYHING you'd like,  just take it".  There would be cases of unopened paper bags,  tools,  hoods,  and the like.  He'd say,  "The more you remove the less I have to dispose of".  Many fun items came out of there,.  He's dead now,  I've moved my studio,  and his shop is now an interior design place that makes curtains,  draperies,  etc.


 


   Closer to home,  a vac shop was closing one of it's 3 stores to make way for a new building.  Again,  I was told,  "If you can carry it............................." I actually got an old, perfect condition "Electrolux" canister.  I sent it to Rick B. in California.


  The great John Lucia was with me the second time I was there.  He told me, "You MUST get that "lux "out of here". That was his first, and, hopefully not his last trip to NEPA. (people refere to North East Pennsylvania as "NEPA".


John

 

[vacuumlover]

Hmm,

Maybe it could be like a tester machine for a department store? Hence the name "options"

Its only a guess though

 

[vintagerepairer]

Hello Rob. Yes I have seen this before - once. It is the updated version of the U2332 cleaner and has the "new" 450 watt motor. The whole machine is one colour - very unusual as practiclaly all other Turbopowers are two-tone. The colour is the exact same as the accent colour on the original burgandy Turbopower from 1983.

I have no idea at all who it was made for. All I know is that during the 1980's Rumberlows had their own range of branded goods under an in-store name of "options". The small applainces were made by Morphy Richards. However, the colour of the stock was white & beige and was originally on sale a few years before this cleaner would have been made.

But that said, it's not to say that the colour scheme didn't change as time progressed. I think we can all assume it's some kind of exclusive line, and a fairly rare one too.

 

[spiraclean]

Yes, Rumbelows. I do remember seeing this cleaner in their window display at the time, can't recall anything else about it though other than it was indeed burgundy. This would have been around 1990 at the latest, maybe a year or two earlier... that's all I have, date wise.

 

[turbomaster1984]

cheers guys

thats been enough - Rumbelows was suggested on another forum so thats solved that mystery. Still Ive been thru the service manuals around these dates and no mention of it. Time to find the rest of the cleaner

 

[turbo500]

Time to find the rest of the cleaner

Oh god, he won't rest til he finds one now!