HMV

Soni

I bet Theo Paphitis is rubbing his hands together!

verylonglegs

I think people are under-estimating two factors as to why people no longer visit the high street, the cost of getting there and the time spent. Shopping on your laptop whilst still tucked up in bed is more convenient and cheaper than driving into town and walking round the shops for a few hours. I remember being dragged round shops as a kid bored witless as my folks shopped for stuff, hardly surpising so many avoid that if possible now, an option that simply wasn't available back then.

rodgers73

I still recall the way in which shops like HMV shamelessly ripped off consumers quite disgracefully throughout the 90s with overpriced CDs and at the same time insisted that the prices were "fair".

I'm not shedding a tear for them.

tiredofwhiners

laurentian wrote:

I still bemoan the small independent record shops being forced to close by the opening of HMV shops on the High Street!

I doubt there would have been enough people of your ilk to support such a shop forever .......it reminds me of a local pub going to close, and the locals protested about it, but when asked, admitted they only went in once a week for half a pint. They assumed that everyone else was supporting the place enough to thrive and they were the only 'light user'. Thats the problem with 'small specialist shops' - everyone wants them but nobody is prepared to spend enough, often enough to keep them going.

crumbschief

I'm still waiting for Andys Records to make a come back,i loved sorting through the vinyl,anyway enough of nostalgia i'm off for a Slush Puppy then maybe some pick 'n' mix from Woolies,i might even take a stroll around the cattle market.

nickyboy zz

pitchshifter wrote:

They didn't see i-Tunes as viable threat. They actually released their own download website (far too late) but it was more expensive than i-Tunes and the downloads themselves were not compatible with iPods!

They also didn't consider the growth of broadband speeds and how that may affect the way we receive our media. We should be watching "HMV movies" on our consoles not "Love-Film" or "Netflix"

They were far to complacent and reacted far to slowly.

Anyone know what happens with Waterstones? Or did they sell that asset off?

Spot on. The common characteristic of the management of HMV, Jessops, Woolies et al is a failure to adapt the business model

I think there is also a danger that we underestimate the shift in consumer shopping patterns. If you're under 40 (or maybe older) then you're used to buying a bigger and bigger proportion of your stuff online. This frees up time to do more exciting things than dragging around the high street comparing washing machine prices.

High streets will increasingly be the domain of businesses that provide something that you can't buy online. This might be coffee, fresh fish or whatever.

And just to be controversial; This also means that the LBS model will have to change to survive. Repairs and maintenance is where it's at for all but the very top end retailers where customers appreciate the added value.

ben@31

verylonglegs wrote:

I think people are under-estimating two factors as to why people no longer visit the high street, the cost of getting there and the time spent. Shopping on your laptop whilst still tucked up in bed is more convenient and cheaper than driving into town and walking round the shops for a few hours.

True. The cost of car parking in my city centre and walking around the shops is £ 5.60 for 2 hours and £ 7.20 for 3 hours. Thats the biggest reason why I prefer not to shop there.

Also Evans / Wiggle online have offer a greater selection than my LBS and for some bizarre reason my LBS only sells one or two obscure brands.

laurentian

tiredofwhiners wrote:

laurentian wrote:

I still bemoan the small independent record shops being forced to close by the opening of HMV shops on the High Street!

I doubt there would have been enough people of your ilk to support such a shop forever .......it reminds me of a local pub going to close, and the locals protested about it, but when asked, admitted they only went in once a week for half a pint. They assumed that everyone else was supporting the place enough to thrive and they were the only 'light user'. Thats the problem with 'small specialist shops' - everyone wants them but nobody is prepared to spend enough, often enough to keep them going.

I can, hand on heart, say that I was a very very regular buyer of many many records from three, one in particular, independent record shops in my local town. The chap behind the counter would hold back a copy of some of the smaller record label stuff that he knew I (and others) liked for me to have a look at/listen on a Saturday with a view to buying it. The shop would also organise coach trips to gigs and promote the local music scene. Didn't get that with HMV and I feel its unlikely to happen with Play.com!

Pross

verylonglegs wrote:

I think people are under-estimating two factors as to why people no longer visit the high street, the cost of getting there and the time spent. Shopping on your laptop whilst still tucked up in bed is more convenient and cheaper than driving into town and walking round the shops for a few hours. I remember being dragged round shops as a kid bored witless as my folks shopped for stuff, hardly surpising so many avoid that if possible now, an option that simply wasn't available back then.

For roughly 50% of the population (know in demographics as 'women'), trudging round shops for hours is actually classed as a hobby and an enjoyable way to spend their freetime apparently - and I always thought the 2% of the population who enjoyed spending their freetime sandpapering their genitalia were weird.

daviesee

Pross wrote:

For roughly 50% of the population (know in demographics as 'women'), trudging round shops for hours is actually classed as a hobby and an enjoyable way to spend their freetime apparently - and I always thought the 2% of the population who enjoyed spending their freetime sandpapering their genitalia were weird.

Most of the women I know spend a very long time over lunch and refreshments and very little time shopping when "shopping".

nunowoolmez

This was just a mtter of time to be honest. Amazed they've lasted this long. Seems odd to not have any music shops around now, sign of the times i suppose, high streets are pretty soulless places at the best of times, only the big boys like John Lewis et al will survive.

RDW

Looks like the asset strippers, sorry, 'restructuring specialists' Hilco are going to try to flog off the lease on the flagship Oxford St store today:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2013 ... reet-store

A shame as this shop is apparently profitable and still has worthwhile sections like the huge classical department in the basement. This probably tells us all we need to know about Hilco's medium term plans for the chain - they shut the Borders across the road some time before pulling the plug on the whole chain.

Now I can only hope that (HMV-owned) Fopp survives - they have a good formula and have got much more of my cash than the regular HMV shops recently.

Pross wrote:

For roughly 50% of the population (know in demographics as 'women'), trudging round shops for hours is actually classed as a hobby and an enjoyable way to spend their freetime apparently

Some of the recent articles about HMV claimed it provided a valuable service to shopping centres as a 'male creche' where husbands and boyfriends could be safely deposited while their other halves got on with the important business of adding to their shoe collections.