Looks like HMV in the UK may survive after all...

Um, any HMV would have Tusk and TITN in the Fleetwood Mac section. cmon!

 

Not the Irish ones when they were open, selection was v poor. Also why would he bother buying 100 failing stores only to keep the economic model the same, apparently hes a huge vinyl fan?

 

Sad to see the Trafford Centre, Manchester store go - I’m assuming this is likely down to the rents being charged and an unwillingness from Intu to lower them. I’m sure another premium (& premium priced) boutique clothing store will occupy the spot. The store was only a shadow of itself since moving to its currently location from where it was over near Apple. Spent a tidy sum in there when the Floyd Discovery box set came out - bought that and a few other albums at the same time.

Glad that my local store in Blackpool has been spared; whilst I’m not optimistic they can survive the physical media downturn in the long run, I’ll buy what I can in there.

 

That means three near me are going - Bristol Cribbs, Fopp Bristol and HMV Bath.

I'm in Bristol Cribbs all the time, but it's one of the smaller stores so I'm not surprised it's facing the axe.

I've been shopping in HMV Bath for 21 years so gutted to see that go, but it's a store with three floors so I guess it has higher overheads etc.

So the closest store to me now is Bristol Broadmead; but unlike the Cribbs store it's difficult to find free parking, which is a deterrent.

 

Happy to see Fopp Edinburgh surviving the cull. Those guys work very hard to make it a good experience for the visiting music fan.

I hadn't realised that the shops haven't been stocking new releases, pending the outcome - I just assumed I couldn't find my cd because of limited stock and storage:

BBC analysis:

But now February has begun, bands are putting out new albums again and their absence from HMV's shelves was starting to look embarrassing.

On Monday, HMV's flagship Oxford Street store was unable to provide copies of the latest CDs by the Specials, Busted and Ian Brown, which had been issued at the end of last week.

That means those albums are hard to find on the High Street right now, since HMV sells nearly a third of the UK's physical music product.

Impulse buyers unable to walk out with those releases may well represent sales that are lost to the music industry forever - providing evidence of why record companies need HMV to survive.

 

There is now officially no point in my ever setting foot in the Trafford Centre again. At least Warrington has been spared.

 

A shame they’re closing their HMV and the Fopp in Manchester. I bet they’d have kept the Fopp if the rent wasn’t so high. Many of the record stores in London went because of huge, unjustifiable rent increases, not due to “the internet” and all those other reasons trotted out willy nilly by the media. That’s why several in Portobello / Notting Hill area are long gone. There used to be 10 or so. I know from the mouths of owners of some that they were doing fine, but Kensington and Chelsea Council threw a massive rent increase at them.

 

There possibly is, however they often get lost but the numerous "What if Ringo's left toe nail was green, would it have affected his drums?" & "Would The Who be just as great if Pete Townsend had stuck exclusively to the ukulele ?" type threads.

 

I'd miss browsing around the store and chatting with other music lovers.

 

*Townshend

 

Don't you mean Toes-end?

 

Genuinely shocked that the nearest one to me - HMV Bromley - is staying open!

 

That's due to the Bromley Contingent innit?

 

This country is mad! So the greedy bastards that own high street property put rents up when there is falling demand for high street shops. Economics does not add up. I've heard of shopping centres being sold of to local councils by these companies for a few quid.

 

Nope not in my local....good to see they may be looking to have more depth in catalogue, that's been half the problem.

I was in HMV on Sunday...looked at the Frank Sinatra section...now old Frank did some 59 studio albums....HMV had two, plus a bundle of cheap compilations....buy who beyond the casual buyer wants those??

I then went to new releases to pick up the new Cherry Glazerr album and zero copies (admittedly that might be due to current situation).

However that fairly sums up HMV for me.....I spend quite a bit of money on music each year....and none of it in HMV. Now if you can't get the dedicated music fan/collector on board as a customer and spending money in this present changing climate, I'd say your screwed.

 

I agree. Looks like Fopp and HMV Nottingham will survive along with Fopp Cambridge, so we can be thankful for small mercies. Hope Fopp Nottingham doesn't fall down the cracks during the future Broadmarsh refurb though.

I've been a semi-regular Fopp/HMV shopper, every now and then there are some good bargains and they featured on my Christmas shopping list. As you say the staff are usually pretty good and the selection is good. Could do without some of the HMV tat though.

 

Pleased to see my local HMV in Carlisle is staying open. I was in there yesterday and always look for my new purchases there rather than buying online (providing the price is relatively comparable - which it usually is). My CD and BluRay purchases these days has reduced a lot from previous years, but the selection in the shop is still quite impressive.

 

Exactly like Ireland, places left empty in ruins sometimes rather then lowering the rents and filling them up, no rent at all as opposed to affordable rent is the new mantra.

 

I'm sad that I've lost my lunchtime haunt as the Oxford St store is...er, was... two minutes walk from work. While the records selection could be hit or miss, the staff were always really nice - I hope they find other jobs quickly. Sorry to see you go.

 

I’ve forgotten the details, but I read an article a few years ago about how it can sometimes make more money owning an empty building and its associated land than renting it out. Your outgoings are minimal, and the value of the land or empty building in some cities or areas increases at a rate higher than any rent you’d get. And of course none of us are taxed on the value of something we own increasing, but everybody is taxed on income, if that makes sense! So although you can’t access the increase in value of an empy building until you eventually sell it, you know it’s silently making money.

Apparently some people in expensive cities like London have an empty house that is worth say, £1 million. Which they could rent for say, £1500 per month, but the thing will increase in value MORE than £1500 per month just left empty, and the owner doesn’t have to deal with tenants, or anything else. Just leave it there making money. It was a fascinating, utterly depressing article but I’m glad I read it, because it explained some of the empty building or demolished building mysteries of London for me.

 

I'm glad to see the Winchester branch has survived. 12 miles or so down the road, Southampton lost its huge three-storey HMV a few years ago. I heard the new owner being interviewed this morning and for him it was all about the rent when deciding which stores would go and which would stay.

The earlier point about Fopp and DVD sales... I would say that the Covent Garden store has a fantastic DVD/BD section, with lots of "arthouse"/indie type films - have spent many hours there in the past. I would not be surprised if it remains an important revenue stream for that particular store.

 

There is also the argument that if everyone continues to insist/pretend that the empty units are worth the rents being asked then investors in the property owning companies do not have to realise a loss and take massive haircuts. With the sheer number of empty retail properties across the nation now, if/when the crash in values is realised it will make 2008 look like mere a bump in the road.

 

And mine in Croydon. Its selection of LPs is so dull. Can't believe they aren't keeping Oxford Street open. Foyles has a done fantastic job of reinventing the iconic bookshop. I have no idea why they don't turn the Oxford Street HMV into more of a destination with a restaurant/cafe, live performance and music exhibition spaces and also target high end listeners. In theory now that the EU has a free trade deal with Japan (yes, I know...) they could import hi-res formats at more reasonable prices.

 

They sell those sort of things in Sunrise in Canada ....

 

The stock selection will change, otherwise no point in taking them over. Here in Canada, Sunrise specialises in smaller stores (mainly in malls), the rent for a prime spot in Oxford St is probably the highest in the country, so the business case for keeping that vast place open is difficult.