After a day off, the Internet artist Eryk Salvaggio returned to the electronics superstore in Salem, N.H., where he was working as a television salesman.

Further, his pet project, Incredible Universe, the giant electronics superstore, as well as Computer City, a no-frills outlet, have bled the company's capital expenditure budget dry with little return.

THE Tandy Corporation's announcement last week of its plans for a chain of electronics superstores called Incredible Universe piqued the interest of many analysts.

Residents also have to leave town to go to an electronics superstore or see a movie.

Circuit City, for instance, announced this week that it would open 40 electronics superstores in New York City by 1999.

In 1975, Mr. Wurtzel's son, Alan, pioneered the nation's first electronics superstore, a 32,000-square-foot outlet in Richmond that offered about 2,000 product selections.

A new factor is that electronics superstores and mass-marketing chains have become more important in sales of computers to home and small-business consumers.

He also noted that major retailers, including drugstore chains and electronics superstores, are further complicating the competitive landscape by selling private-label products made in China.

I visited a couple of local electronics superstores, read Consumer Reports, talked to friends.

Tandy said that as part of a plan to open 30 computer and consumer electronics superstores, it would hire 3,600 people.