Customer profile
What was the name of your video store?
Rancho Cotati Home Video
Where was the store located?
Cotati, California (United States)
When did you start shopping at this store?
1984
Describe your video store - what did it look like? What were its distinguishing
features?
It was a shoebox sized store in a strip mall located next to a twin screen movie theater.
What were the employees and/or owners like, and what kinds of interactions
did you have with them? What particularly memorable exchanges or events
do you remember?
Mostly cycled through local teenagers, some of whom I went to school with.
What other services/products did the store offer besides the rental or sale
of videos? Did this change over time?
Just videos and equipment rental. They eventaully moved into a bigger space that had video games and arcade in '91.
What video formats did the store offer (i.e. VHS, Beta, Laserdisc)? Where were
different formats kept in the store?
VHS & Beta. They phased beta out about 1989.
In addition to mainstream Hollywood movies, what other kinds of videotapes
(for example children's, exercise, or X-rated) did the store rent/sell? Where were these
videos found in the store, and how often did you rent or purchase them?
Porno. Seems to have been thier trademark in hindsight.
Did you tend to rent or buy videos? Why?
I owned a betamax until 1989, so I tended to rent VHS and copy them to beta since macrovision didn't work in the transition.
During the period that you shopped at this store, what changes did you see?
Nothing. Even the new owners at the most recent location were still using the same bar code system and dot matrix printers.
Is this store still open? If not, when did it close?
Owners moved the store twice and eventually sold it.
In your own words, tell the story of your first VCR/video player. Where
and when did you buy it, and why did you decide to make the purchase?
I got a Sears brand version of a Sanyo Beta recorder in the winter of '83. It probably cost $400, and it was a gift.
Did you ever rent a VCR or other hardware (a camera, for instance)? If so,
how often and why?
My folks rented a VHS player a few times from other stores for parties and such.