Paved with Bargains". The company, which had leased floor space from the Zodys discount stores as well as other department stores, began acquiring retail stores and turning them into Circuit City Superstores. The first of these replacements occurred in Knoxville, Tennessee; Charleston, South Carolina; and Hampton, Virginia. In 1981, Circuit City entered the New York City market by acquiring the six remaining stores of the bankrupt Lafayette Radio chain. They operated the stores under the "Lafayette/Circuit City" name and expanded to 15 locations, but the stores were not profitable and were closed in 1986 after spending US$20 million to enter the market. In 1985, Circuit City entered the Los Angeles market by opening seven Superstore locations in former The Akron discount stores. The next year, Circuit City opened five more Superstores in the market and closed the licensed electronics and appliance departments it operated in Zodys stores. The new stores featured the "red tower" entrance that ultimately became a trademark of the company. The towers were designed to make the store more identifiable to drivers among the endless stores and shopping centers in Los Angeles. In 1988, Circuit City began constructing the new "plug" design Superstore formats. The company also returned to New York City opening a superstore in Union Square, the first of two planned Manhattan locations. In late 1988, Circuit City had an opportunity to purchase Best Buy, a growing competitor at the time, for US$30 million. The offer was rejected by Richard Sharp, Circuit City's CEO, since he believed they could open a store in Best Buy's home territory of Minneapolis and easily beat the competitor. During this era, Circuit City became known for its exceptional service, going so far as to have many of its staff factory-trained. Its slogan, likewise, was "Welcome to Circuit City, Where Service Is State of the Art". Many Circuit City stores were out of date and in bad locations, unable to compete with newer Best Buy stores. In 2000, Circuit City moved away from the Superstore showroom format and introduced a new more self-service "Big Box" format called "Horizon." The new format eliminated the red tower entrances and moved the entrance to the center of the store. The selling floor was enlarged with lower sight lines and the race track was removed. A central checkout was located at the front of the store and shopping baskets were added for small items.