Saturday Deluxe / 29 April 2023
HMV to return to London’s Oxford Street
HMV returns to Oxford Street
Music retailer HMV have announced they are returning to London’s Oxford Street later this year, after a period where they no presence at all in central London, barring the shop in the Westfield in Shepherd’s Bush.
The retailer returns to 363 Oxford Street, the location where the HMV brand (owned at the time by The Gramophone Company) started back in 1921. That original store was eventually overshadowed when HMV moved east across Regent Street and opened what was then claimed to be the larger record shop on the planet at 150-154 Oxford Street, in 1986 (that site had been a Woolworths between 1932 and 1977).
For 14 years, between 1986 to 2000, there were two very large HMV shops in Oxford Street but 363 shut its doors in 2000 and the flagship store (150-154) closed in January 2014 after the administrators were brought in the year before and HMV was bought out for an estimated £50 million in by Hilco (in April 2013). A a bullish move at the time, Hilco re-opened as HMV at 363 Oxford Street, but survived only for six years.
HMV went into administration again, in late December 2018 and in February 2019 Canadian Retailer Sunrise Records, headed by founder Doug Putman, acquired the ailing music retail chain and then promptly shut 363 Oxford Street!
The new shop at will feature an updated HMV logo and will debut a new ‘HMV Shop’ concept which will then be rolling out to existing stores (of which there are 120 in the UK) and to 24 new sites across the UK and Europe.
I think all physical music fans in London and the South East of England will be pleased with this news and wish HMV well, but you have to wonder what the medium to longterm future is for the chain. We’ve been here before, after all. But, if nothing else it will be good to be rid of that horrendous ‘American Candy’ store that currently occupies the site.
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Bank in the 80’s and 90’s I spent so many hours in the larger HMV (the original was was far smaller and on too many floors) as I worked in the school holidays on Newman Street close by. I always preferred the Virgin megastore though which was even larger and had everything…
To me things took a turn for the worse when Vinyl slowly moved towards the back of the shop, 12 inch singles started to disappear, and CDs and then video games moved to the front. Holding a CD in your had isn’t the same as holding a physical vinyl record, and the convenience of CD didn’t off-set that feeling, look or sound.
It’s amazing how expensive those vinyl OGs are today… just wish I’d bought and kept a few more.
Even though it’s neck and neck between the number of HMV’s insolvencies and Sinatra’s retirements, I do think this is a very promising development for HMV, symbolically above all (and anything that displaces Money Laundering R US, sorry, I mean, “American Sweet Shops” is a great thing…). Lots and lots of great memories of spending a lot of time (and far too much money) in the old shop – the happy exploration is a key part of the shopping experience. I get the misgivings about HMV pivoting towards merch to shore up sales, but speaking for my local in Stevenage, they’ve done a great job of striking a balance in the layout, so while – yes – the Funko Pops and t-shirts etc are up front, the shop is still dominated by music and film, so it never feels horribly compromised. I try and support my local HMV as much as I can, but the vinyl prices are simply not enticing – £35 for an album?? – and I noticed that the Criterion Collection blu-rays have gone up to £25.99 which previously was the price of the boxed editions, not the plastic case ones. Still, it’s great to see an important brand turning a corner (hopefully).
I’m pretty sure that not all owners of American sweet shops are crooks!! I know the wee Asian guy that runs the one in the Livingston centre,him ,wife and child seems legit to me and I get his soon to be out of date gear cheap!! So let’s go easy on American sweet shop owners!! Now barbers on the other hand!!
My experience of HMV in my 60 years on this planet is mixed:
Seconds Out display and a couple years later Love Hunter. Then Acoustically the famous Zeppelin 7” for £2.50 ish; all at HMV Stockton on Tees
Many records from HMV Middlesbrough and Newcastle on Tyne.
Then getting to know the singles buyer at Chester and getting The Coral early singles for my daughter from there and when he moved to Liverpool.
However Chester HMV conspired with Virgin megastore to force the closure of Phoenix Records In Chester and people reminisce about the closure of these two…
However used many vouchers to acquire the Shine On box set and other Floyd stuff was purchased there.
Before closure I saw Mr Stephen Richard Hackett promote his Wolflight album in the Oxford St store along with others.
I have queued at Nottingham Victoria “Viccy” Centre for various exclusive items in their version of RSD.
So I suppose good luck and hope that those travelling to Oxford Street travel a few 10s of yards across the rod onto Berwick St and Reckless and Sister Ray records.
Good luck more importantly to the multitude of Independants out there such as Badlands and Sound It Out and Reflex in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Hopefully Grey and Pink records second hand store is still going strong in Chester.
Carl
Will this be a turning point in the decline of streets like Oxford Street? I doubt it. But I do hope that a generation of music lovers who never experienced rummaging for music and film you didn´t know you want until you find it, might experience the joy of doing so. (I hope this sentence makes any sense, if not: sorry about that).
I have noticed there are not too many Canuck comments in this discussion. In my neck of the woods Sunrise Records took over for HMV a few years back. Yes, there are a smattering of independent shops around town. Some are worth visiting more than others. Prices vary from extremely over priced to reasonable, given that one has time to look and or dig for the gem or sought after item. Vinyl and CDs are available in both of these locations, however toys and trinkets are part of the experience when shopping. The one spot that I do prefer to shop for CDs is a spot called Value Village (a second hand thrift store). There are 5 of those of to visit in town. The vinyl selection is really spotty, however the CDs, much more lucrative of a selection. They are priced at $1.99 a piece, double sets too, and are really hard to beat. They are not sealed and very easy to grade as wanted or not. Back in the day Toronto was my go to spot, Sam the Record Man, HMV and many independent shops. As many have mentioned, those were the good old days! I must admit, though I have always enjoyed the hunt at physical stores, I primarily shop on line. Frugal collector as always yes, but the world is still my oyster!
London Ontario used to have some cracking record stores a few years back!! Might still be there!
I’m in Quebec City and Sunrise is always the first place I go when physically shopping for cds, the prices are higher than Amazon but lower than Archambault which is store chain than can be found in the province of Quebec. Still too many toys and candies but if that’s what it takes to have bricks and mortars record stores, so be it. Sunrise also has second hand vinyl records! I would love to shop more at independent records stores, but, unfortunately, where I live, many of them are snubbing cds!!
This is good news for London. Do we know where the new stores will be opening? I call into Manchester HMV when my wife is at the hospital and I’ve a few hours to kill. It’s OK, but wow. Some of the prices are quite steep for vinyl. Jethro Tull Heavy Horses £59.99!!! Crazy. I’ve picked up some CDs from there at reasonable prices, but I remember when you used to get stuff there that you couldn’t get elsewhere. Imports etc that I still have in my collection. I visited the Fopp store up the road and wasn’t too impressed. It had the look of an independent store, but obviously isn’t. I also visited some of the second hand shops there. What a disappointment that was! Nothing of note in stock. Manchester has such a musical heritage, but clearly no longer seems to be embraced by those selling product. I wish HMV all the best in this “rebirth ” and hope that banks start to follow suit and bring back the high street experience. One can only hope…..
It’s HMV but not as we would like it. Short of taking a time machine back to the 1980s it never can be.
I do occasionally shop online at HMV or Amazon, especially if the price is too good not to. But I mostly spend with the indies. Somebody mentioned a lack of knowledge and interest from the staff at HMV. I guarantee you the people who work at Lost In Vinyl in Cambridge, South Records in Southend, and Drift at Totnes really care about music and know their stuff. Rough Trade and Banquet (in Kingston) host some brilliant in-store performances from artists releasing new music. Some indies have started hosting in-store listening parties ahead of the release of a new album that week.
These are the music shops worth supporting in 2023, who feel part of the eco system. Not just some historic brand logo that’s been passed between random investors trying to exploit the nostalgia but with no emotional connection to the music and what it means to us.
Do they sell used vinyl and cds ? In my experience chain stores do a poor job of selling used albums. Over here in America, FYI started selling used albums about ten years ago. They would seal the album so you couldn’t check the condition or pressing. When I asked the store manager about what pressing a particular album is he had no idea of what I was talking about. Amoeba is one of the few chains that still acts like a mom and pop store .
Sorry, but I always preferred the Virgin Megastore, but I guess that was a long time ago now. The two closest HMVs closed down a while ago near me and all I’ve got is a FOPP in Cambridge. Sad thing is that even when I find something I’d fancy, I’m always put off by the prices and so prefer doing my hunting down of stuff I want on eBay or discogs. Takes much less time.
I remember when hmv were close to folding and in Hull they had bring any cd or dvd in and we will give you a £1 credit on gift card. For a week I brought in all the tat I didnt want and raided cex of its 5p and 10p dvds (minimum a £1 now) and managed to get a brand new top of the range ipad for hardly anything. That’s when hmv did 2nd hand as what me and others brought it they would resell for £2 to try and get cash to stay afloat. Came a point though when they had too many of the same cd brought it by punters. Happy Times for a week way back then and hmv survived so win/win
I like to go record shopping in person so for mainstream purchases that the Indies won’t have I tend to frequent the HMV in Stockport. It’s big and well stocked and unlike some of the stores mentioned on this thread, downstairs is pretty much 50/50 CDs and Vinyl so it feels like a music and movies shop and has that 80s timewarp vibe which I do appreciate. Most of the toys, merch and pop culture stuff is upstairs in the absurdly vast DVD/Blu-Ray department. It’s decent and tbh I usually find what I was after and it’s good for a browse and it does throw up the odd surprise.
I agree with what others have said about the pricing though – HMV tend to be 10-20% over Indie shops, never mind the dodgers, and gone are the days when the Fopp branches had loads of £5 CDs and bargains (apart from books). I’ll continue with HMV as I support the fight to help our High Streets and district centres thrive but I think there’s a wider issue around pricing – particularly with CDs I find it absurd that new CDs are more expensive £11-14 quid – the crazy pricing of the Depeche Mode album is a case in point (nothing to do with HMV – the bog standard CD currently 15.98 on the dodgers)
Great news, Oxford Street needs this, many happy memories of shopping here, I use the Banbury HMV now, prices ok during sale time, be interested to see what happens, I wish it well, Fopp in Covent Garden my choice of store when I’m working in London, Elizabeth line bringing a lot of footfall back so good timing
I am so pleased to hear this. Yes I know it will sell darth Vader cereal and those pop figures and American sweets but I love rifling through the vinyl in the Bristol store while someone eyes up their first record player. I hope they find a sustainable business model for the footfall required to pay the rent and help a new generation discover the magic of holding the music in their hands. They need to keep the exclusives coming to help with that. I remember going in the 80s on a coach from college for some student protest and legging it to HMV and picking up all the Sisters Of Mercy 12 inch vinyls that until then I had only gotten on a tape from a mate who knew a bloke…. Good to see it’s coming back, different yes but good nevertheless :-)
This is great news but whilst I am lucky enough to have a local branch of hmv , I can’t say I ever really enjoy the experience much . Like many others have said it’s mostly full of over priced tat like mystery boxes or cans of Japanese soda and sweets . The music element of the shop is drowned out by everything else. I like the selection of blu rays there but they’re never very competitively priced. They should try and actually make it more of an actual music shop , do more regular limited HMV only pressing vinyls to get people in and really put more focus on vinyl and CDs . Maybe Even a cassette section !
This fills me heart with joy. I spent hours in there each week buying, discovering and being surround my my first love music.
So I worked at HMV for 3 years in the late 1990s, my first real job. That was at the low point in vinyl sales, where CDs and even album cassettes were far outselling them. I ran the albums back catalogue, and SDEs were still “box sets”. I do miss Oxford St main branch, the return of the 363 branch isnt quite the same as the ‘megastore’. Space being limited, I can”t see it being that different to Fopp (which is now a subsidiary). Where the could innovate is to introduce a ‘used’ section with a high quality threshold so only VG Condition stock was included. Fopp now have used vinyl but space is limited. Expand it to CDs and cassettes and price standard CD issues around £3. No different to Record & Tape but more space to present them in a way attractive to casuals. ‘Charity shop’ sector is a growth area in these eco-conscious times. Plus, now deleted rarities could be stocked to make the shopping experience better for the collector.
HMV did try second hand for a few months about 5 years ago.
What makes me sad is that I used to work for WHSmith in the early to mid-1980s (Saturday and holiday job)and I remember the massive amount of floorspace given up to music. We had racks and racks and racks of the stuff. The issue always was that all that was ever out was the sleeve and we had to go and either get a sleeved copy from the shelf if it was a big seller or retrieve the record and inner sleeve to slot in to the empty sleeve.
It’s just that music mattered, it was big business and had immense value, hence the floor space. And we weren’t even a record shop. When you had something like Pleasuredome or Make it Big we would shift hundreds in a Saturday.
I have to echo the comments here that an HMV store isn’t really what older music fans remember.
Up until it closed, the megastore on Oxford Street was great for a browse, and the frequent offers and sales – I used to love dropping in on the way home from work.
The stores I’ve visited in the last few years have been tat and a bare bones stock of over-priced music.
As part of the same chain [still?] Fopp seems to be where the interesting stock and prices go.
Proces at the Fopp where I live (Cambridge) tend to be significantly more expensive than the local independent shops,,let alone Amazon.
A couple of bargains at my local HMV yesterday, thank you very much!
I have a vivid and pleasant memory of finding Modern English’s “Gathering Dust” ep in the original store on a visit to London circa 1983. As my tastes got more obscure, I found myself gravitating to the indie shops in Notting Hill Gate or Berwick Street on subsequent visits to the UK, but I usually made time to visit HMV and almost always found something to get excited about.
Why not a Sinclair MUSiC STORE ????
Selling nothing but SDES
??? I’m not saying central London,but there is a million empty units in Hatfield mall that would go for a very reasonable price!!
Based on their recently reopened store in Crawley West Sussex where they had been closed for some years before starting in a new location close to where they were before this HMV Store concept sounds like what we have already.
That means the focus of the store is merchandise, funko pops and sweets. The music and video being pushed to the back of the store. But any time I’ve been in the only people buying are the youngsters at the front of the store buying all the tat. Why I stick to HMV online.
Am sure when they reopen on Oxford Street the ground floor will be the tat as that drives footfall these days. Then based upon old layout, 1st floor will be music and the basement video.
Sadly as some below note it’s all that tat which sells on the high street these days to youngsters with disposable income. Those of an older generation like many here will find little to make them buy in these new format HMV. In fact they have more stock to our taste in their Fopp store in Cambridge Circus London which is a mile or so away from where HMV are reopening.
For the life of me, I just can’t understand the attraction of funko pop.
The troll dolls, or maybe Beanie Babies, of the 2020s?
The HMV store that comes back will, naturally, not be like the HMV store that closed. I used to spend hours at a time in the two flagship HMV stores browsing the rare finds or window shopping the amazing boxed sets (many of them never to be found outside London) but in a world of internet shopping and computerised stock systems this retail experience has no future. Never will I find a cassette with a stock file card attached to it with a rubber band to confirm that it is the last copy in the shop (and possibly the UK) …
Aren’t people missing the point here a bit with their comments about what HMV need to sell and what they should be doing differently?
The reason they’re giving for opening new stores is that they’re doing pretty well….so perhaps they need to carry on just as they are!
Agree and I haven’t seen as many younger people in HMV for years and yes, some are even buying CDs. If the business model is working, I can ignore what I am not interested in and still buy a CD on the high Street as I did in Leeds HMV last week. I am well served by York, Leeds and Castleford HMVs and long may they continue.
Absolutely. I was in the Sheffield one this weekend and it was incredibly busy, with loads of younger people buying all sorts.
As you say, if it means I can still go out and treat myself to a few CDs on a Saturday afternoon I’m not sure why it matters if they sell stuff I’m not personally interested in buying. Whatever works for them in this tough climate for high street stores.
Well said! The fact that HMV exists at all is quite remarkable when 15 years ago it looked like the game was up for Music retail. I’m glad I can still go music shopping on a Saturday afternoon so all power to HMV, the Indies and the 2nd hand shops
As their CEO said, the reason they are doing pretty well is – “The expansion of our fan-focused pop culture offering is really working for us”. I’m assuming that the ‘fan focused pop culture offering’ they are making their money from is the ‘crap/tat’ of sweets/funko pops/merchandise that other commenters are bemoaning, rather than a deep-dive selection of vinyl.
Brilliant news. London without an HMV doesn’t make sense. It’s the music capital of the UK.
Well I’ll go to the foot of our stairs ! They couldn’t compete back then what’s new . Anyhow good news ian anderson s recent analouge planet interview he say s broadsword deluxe now set for july . Also hes okayed Steve Wilson’s bursting out mixes for release ? New album next year also . Cheerio
HMV opened a new store in Princes Street in Edinburgh recently after being absent for a number of years. (They also moved the local FOPP about a mile away, which was annoying).
I visited the HMV over the Easter Weekend and all the vinyl is upstairs, accessed via a narrow staircase or one-person lift. They’ve dumped a couple of sofas near the window, obviously trying for some sort of ‘coffee shop’ ambience and failing miserably. I’m not convinced this big return to Edinburgh city centre is going to last long. I’ll probably keep making the trip to Ocean Terminal
I’ve been in the HMV on Princes Street too. It’s pretty dreadful. Again all the “tat” is at the front of the store. Very strange.
As for FOPP moving to Shandwick Place. I know they had to move from Rose Street but I can’t see it working there. Been in a couple of times and it was deserted both times. Used to be such a great shop when they were in Cockburn Street, exciting and adventurous stock. Now it’s just depressing. Makes me wonder how long they can keep selling the same stuff over and over again. Best thing for me about FOPP these days is the cheap books.
While it will be nice to have a HMV back in the center of London (not counting the much superior Fopp which is basically HMV with a focus much more on Music & Film and less on Funko & tshirts) its not something I’ll be going out of my way to visit.
All vinyl will be stupidly priced (my local HMV has everything at £5-£10 higher than indie stores I visit therefore I only ever pick up the odd sale item) and they won’t be selling anything that you can’t find in every other music store.
There are plenty of great indie stores close by in London (Sister Ray, Phonica, Sounds of The Universe, Reckless and others just off Oxford Street in Soho / Rough Trade and many many others further out) that have much better selections, staff who actually love music and are usually cheaper than HMV.
Agree that getting rid of at least 1 more of the “American Candy” tax dodge/money laundering fronts is great news though!!!
I think it really depends on the individual store/manager. The HMV in Guildford changed layout to put the vinyl much more front and centre which made a huge difference. Always seems to be fairly busy when I go in. I’ve been to others which resemble merch stores more than record stores.
I like that HMV is back (though it’s not quite like the good old days) but going in now and then, some of the record prices are insane. The two indie stores near me price things much better, HMV has some bizarre pricing. £59.99 for Neil Young’s Harvest (1LP) or £50 for The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour. And the one by me stuffs far too many records into wooden shelving – and puts the rest into plastic crates on the floor. Most of the albums are damaged.
It’s a mess and not an enjoyable experience.
But the tat gets a huge space on one side of the store, the vinyl is relegated to 2nd class. A real shame, I want the brand to thrive and become the store it once was.
So wot where the good old days??
I can’t remember a day when hmv sold anything cheaper than there rivals,!!
The good old days when most people bought physical music and HMV was relevant.
Ah yesteryear!!
When everything was so much better!!
I worked just behind Debenhams for 10 years on Oxford Street and 363 was a daily pilgrimage. I do remember that after 363 closed for the first time in 2000 they relocated to a 3 storey store almost opposite the junction of Bond Street and just further down from 363 towards Selfridges. Singles and dvd in the basement, cds on ground floor and a great classic and easy listening floor upstairs.
Great music buying times.
I used to have regular trips to 363 in the seventies. Always referred to it as the Bond Street branch. The last time I went was, I think, to get Blackstar on the day of release. At some point a store must have opened directly opposite at 360, it is listed on the internet with a slightly different postcode. Boy George had some exhibition there. The other hmv store was between Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road, and Virgin was at the end. I have a recollection of going to the original Virgin store, and buying a Who bootleg (Closer to Queen Mary) and the Beatles compilation Hey Jude, and a friend got Sunflower by the Beach Boys. HMV recently reopened their Bexleyheath branch, the vinyl prices are quite shocking.
Would be neat to see this incarnation. I did a college semester abroad in London during Spring of 1990, and music shopping was one of my biggest highlights of the time there. Every week, I made the trip down Oxford Street – Piccadilly Circus hitting HMV, Virgin and Tower. Brought back all sorts of music from U2, Simple Minds, Duran Duran, Adam Ant and Level 42 that I wasn’t finding back here in the US. Plus, I got to hear so many unfamiliar artists playing over the stores’ speakers. Still have all those CDs on the rack and remember these experiences fondly.
One can still find the odd bargain in HMV (I got ‘Goats Head Soup’ and ‘The La’s’ both on vinyl for 14.99 each last week). But there is too much cosplay, superheroes and Star Wars nonsense in there for my liking. It’s a record shop, not a toy store.
And there’s the rub. It’s NOT a record shop. Not now, at any rate.
It’s an ENTERTAINMENT store. With candy.
When many HMV branches were closing a few years ago, there was a last minute decision to keep the Glasgow Braehead branch open.
What a mistake that was.
Quite simply HMV is not the HMV we knew and loved.
After failing to get everything I was looking for online at HMV vinyl sale, I decided to try The Glasgow store last week.
The main themes now at HMV are those irritating funko pops and blue rays/dvds
Vinyl has a small section tucked away at the back, mostly mainstream stuff.
I came away, empty handed and feeling old, depressed and wondering if they’ll ever make a funko pop of Frank Sidebottom.
I am also confused about the location of a western Oxford St HMV shop after 2000. I worked in London in late 2001 and early 2002 and used to walk up from Piccadilly in my lunchtime to an HMV on Oxford St near Bond St. It wasn’t a big store but they had some good sales.
Just checked Google Map – the one I went to was on north side of Oxford St. 363 is on south side.
Hi Steve. Yep that’s the one. Nathan Thomas below accurately described the location as being “ on the corner’ of Oxford Street & Stratford place (356-360 Oxford street)”. I used to go there regularly during my lunch breaks from work.
And if they didn’t have what you wanted & you could be bothered, you could walk further up Oxford Street to the Virgin store near Marble Arch
It was over 3 floors & was about 5 times the size of 363 so ‘wasn’t a big store’ seems an understatement!
As you said , we’ve been here before . The shop will be there while they make tons of money once again selling you the collection you already have bought 2 or 3 times over , this time in colored over weight vinyl that you don’t need to be 180 grams at triple the price it should be because , well because vinyl is BACK !! Its back for them at least with their 2,500 copy runs . There have been literally over 250 issues of the McCartney album ( not my figure – Discogs figure I believe ) . And it’s not so difficult at all to see where the future of this shop lies . It lies in cd’s are BACK !!!! I have already seen more than a few rumblings of a cd revival starting . I realize you make your living off this stuff Paul , but you do show some signs of integrity otherwise I wouldnt have bothered typing all this out ( and boy did I cut it short ) . Hopefully this will be the first time you don’t flag my post lol .
Across the pond, I am still mourning the loss of the Tower Records near Columbus Circle, the Tower Records in Greenwich Village, and the Virgin Megastore in Times Square in New York – not to mention awesome HMV stores in both Boston and New York. I don’t suspect we’ll ever again see anything as alluring as those shops that were responsible for most of my discretionary spending in the ’80s and ’90s. I’m not very hopeful, but is there any indication that HMV might reopen stores in the U.S.?
Jason, to re-experience “ the allure” take a month off ( and you will need a month ) and get yourself to Tokyo. For a record lover it’s just like the 21st century never happened, Tower records is huge, HMV is an hilarious, pop-themed time-machine and the local chains are gold mines of UK and US first pressings. There is no CD revival nonsense, because CDs never went away here.
Agree about Tokyo with the huge Tower Records and Disk Union chains. Fantastic. I can also recommend Amoeba in Los Angeles and there is a pretty good LA record shop scene generally. East Coast USA, particularly New York is a shadow of its former glory, just like London.
I don’t know when last you visited Amoeba LA, but it moved to a much, much smaller space and is now a pale shadow of its former self. For me, it was a huge disappointment, as I used to habitually spend a full day in the old, block-sized store and find all sorts of obscure treasures for a pittance. Such a disappointment, in fact, that on my last visit to LA I didn’t even bother. (The new store also no longer offers parking, and neither your car nor your person is safe in the surrounding side streets, which are essentially an open drug market and homeless camp. So budget for secure parking if you go.)
FYI There is secure parking directly below the new store
Thank you, Simon. The website says Amoeba validates for 75 minutes, which is a start at least.
1) I can barely contain myself. Tripping to London now has a meaningful purpose again.
2) what are they planning to sell though, t-shirts and mugs????
3) I hope that they noticed how much vinyl is selling and that there would be a reason for a physical store, but hopefully they will apply human prices?
Things do go round in circles. It was called “The HMV Shop” back in the 70s and 80s wasn’t it? And the lower-case logo hasn’t been in place for all that long. Are they changing it back to upper-case?!
Some very good news amongst the Brexit-induced six-fold closure of pubs and clubs. I will make a special trip when this reopens. I used to regularly visit the big Tower Records in Piccadilly Circus too and it felt like a pilgrimage. The music means more when you buy it in person.
I first went in to 363 when I was on a school trip from the North in 1979, on the day that “The Wall” was released; I almost had to be dragged out. I still get a thrill when I see pictures of the old store front.
As an American, I heartily concur that American Candy is bad, and nearly any retailer is better than an American Candy store. :-)
On my next trip to London, whenever that is, I hope to visit this HMV location and be pleasantly surprised.
The 363 branch of HMV did close in 2000 but it moved across the road on Oxford Street on the corner where it existed for 13 years until it re-opened at 363 in 2013.
There was no HMV “on the corner” of Oxford Street.
363 did move to another location ‘on the corner’ of Oxford Street & Stratford place (356-360 Oxford street) – almost directly opposite the original 363 store where it stayed until it downscaled again to 363
That’s definitely the one I recall from 2001-2002. Main area of CDs on a mezzanine floor.
Yes, Rock & Pop on ground floor, with Classical music & folk/country/easy listening etc upstairs & VHS/DVD’s in the basement.
I remember 356/360 opening as my young sister dragged me to the opening day as Ronan Keating (who?) was opening it & she had a crush on him !
You’re quite right. I’m not 100% on the sequence of events here, but I do remember that when HMV first left 363 (and it became a branch of Foot Locker for a few years), they moved almost directly opposite. Then – so the version of the story I heard goes – Forever 21 (or the holding company that owns them perhaps) wanted the 356-360 premises so much, they offered Hilco (at the time) an eight-figure sum (one rumour put it at £11 Million plus legal and moving expenses) to end their lease there early – at which point they swung a deal to re-take 363 and moved back in, which they did for a few years (majoring a lot, as some rightly say, on Funkos and T-shirts on the ground floor). Then they closed up and vacated again. This will be their third spell of occupying that site – will be interesting to see where things go from here. The impression I get from things like the Birmingham ‘Vault’ HMV branch, and the remaining Fopp branches seeming to be doing brisk business whenever I visit (I don’t just mean from me!), it seems to be faring okay under Sunrise. But I suspect the outlook for physical music stores is still, as Paul says, quite uncertain.
I remember there being a branch across the road from 363, which was on a corner.
Yes there was. The main entrance was on Oxford Street and there was was another entrance on Tottenham Court Road.
That was Virgin not HMV.
Bloody hell, my memory is going in my old age. Thirty years passes so quickly.
A Virgin, then a Zavvi, before Primark took it over.
Sorry Paul you are wrong. You could walk down the east side of the relocated store so it was indeed on a corner. It’s where people used to queue for signings etc.
Also you say “For 14 years, between 1986 to 2000, there were two very large HMV shops in Oxford Street” again that’s not true as the relocated store opposite 363 was open until the very least 2008 because I remember bumping into Paul Weller in the basement.
Fair enough. Although as I understand it the “relocated store” wasn’t open at the same time as 363 therefore the 14 year statement is correct, is it not?
No, the statement is still incorrect. Your maths game is a bit weak.
HMV moved from 363 directly to the opposite store at 356-360 (the old Lilley & Skinner shoe shop) around spring/summer of 2000, so therefore there were *always* two big stores on Oxford Street from 1986 to at least 2008 – rather more than 14 years.
The statement is factually correct. I didn’t say “only” 14 years.
Maybe you are thinking of the one that was beside The Trocadero at Piccadilly Circus.
In a not very interesting coincidence, I read this comment while hearing the song Trocadero by Showaddywaddy.
I did warn you it wouldn’t be very interesting.
“…But, if nothing else it will be good to be rid of that horrendous ‘American Candy’ store that currently occupies the site.”
Sorry, but any HMV Shop I have been in of recent years is not that much better.
I am certain that the owner of Sunrise., on buying HMV, promised that HMV would return to a store for the hardcore music lover with a healthy selection and deep back catalogue selections. Instead we got a glamorised toy/merch store that sold some records.
Agree totally. I was last in a HMV a few years ago, and it was totally miserable experience. All the music was shoved upstairs, into dark and dismal surroundings; and the selection of available music products was mediocre, to say the least. There was just one or two other souls wandering around the place, looking similarly downbeat. I left and have never felt the urge to return. Such a contrast to the great record shops of the 80s.
Edit: Just read Colin’s great post, below. The Belfast store is also the one I’m referring to.
The HMV Vault in Birmingham has a strong vinyl selection and a decent CD selection as well as plenty of DVDs/BRDs. It’s fine up to a point. That point being the prices, particularly for vinyl records. They are lovely to look at, not so much to buy. Up to £30 or £35 for single albums is a very rich price.
I sometimes buy CDs there, but rarely LPs. If I want an LP it’s either direct from a band or via an online site.
Almost every other HMV I’ve been in to recently is as you say full of tat and the sale of music seems to e an afterthought at best. I’d like HMV to continue and the vault concept is good, but the prices are astronomical.
I’d also like somewhere to buy classical CDs. The big HMV on Oxford Street was wonderful if you wanted Jazz or Classical music. I don’t know anywhere now that has a decent range of Cds except online.
I found the Birmingham Vault quite a depressing experience when I visited last year. Big, and surprisingly empty (even on a Saturday afternoon). And EXPENSIVE.
I’d love to know what the economics are of running such a place. They must have got the rent for a song. Or sell a lot of candy.
Oh. I was going to ask about the Vault and whether it was as impressive as it sounds and warranted a day trip from Liverpool. Obviously not. That’s a pity.
I visit the Westfield store quite regularly but rarely buy anything, which if you knew me is a thing. Prices in store are ridiculous for a start, also it doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be… a toy shop, a sweet shop (it too sells American candy!), or a film, book and music store? I’ve never seen it particularly busy (unlike FOPP in Covent Garden) except on ‘National album days’ etc.
It’s great that the shop is re-re-reopening on Oxford Street but there has to be a major rethink. They have to decide WHAT they are, they have to sell more GENUINE limited exclusives (like TARGET in the U.S.) rather than just ‘indie only’ (available everywhere releases) be it music or plastic Funko toys. More signed stuff (Books, CD, Vinyl) in store performances etc. If you buy one-line free store pick-ups.
They need to take a leaf out of shops like Banquet Records (special live performances with physical purchases etc), Japanese imports etc.
Back in the day I remember Tower Records in Glasgow had a machine where you could make up your own compilation album by an artist (I did a Dylan one for a friend… you got to pick from a selection of tracks and if memory serves me well… a generic ‘Best of… cover. I can’t remember if you got a track listing) how can you know. I think bringing something like that back would be cool, or the ability to make up a CD online and collect it in store
I’d also say they need to concentrate on smaller stores (HMV Locals?) or FOPP’s in University towns and cities (Byres Road in Glasgow or areas that already have record shops close by (Notting Hill Gate, Brick Lane in London etc) and have local band sections specific to those cities.
Maybe bring back some form of listening stations and think of having a coffee shop (HMV branded coffee?) to entice customers in.
Tower Records in Glasgow was great. Took far too much of my money
The custom CDR machines you mention were rendered pointless decades ago when cheap CDRW recorders appeared. Last time I checked, you could buy an external drive for roughly US$20 online. Most people can access recordings from their own collections to make mixtapes, so didn’t need the large library offered by the in-store machines.
I had (and still have) a Sony CD Recorder. Indeed home CD-R made the in store machines less relevant, but the fact that you had an OFFICIAL unique compilation CD with artwork I maintain was (and would still be) pretty cool :)
I was in High Wycombe recently and the HMV there does indeed have a local bands section which I thought pretty cool. Although I’m not a local so I had no idea whether I would have liked the bands.
Not sure that would work in a flagship city centre location though.
I happend to be in the UK this week to visit London with the family. It was the first time since 2018 that I was back in the UK and I knew that HMV was in trouble but never realised that the Oxford Street store had closed down. Wanting to stop by the store only to realise that it was no longer there. I was quite shocked with the large amount of horrendous ‘candy stores’ that are all over the city.
We came back yesterday and I was really happy to read (a Pet Text) that HMV was to return to Oxford Street. I hope they will find a model that works as it will be a balancing act.
“…But, if nothing else it will be good to be rid of that horrendous ‘American Candy’ store that currently occupies the site.”
I couldn’t agree with you more..!
Always makes me sad walking past 363 Oxford Street to see that horrendous US candy store and wondering how they could sell enough sweets to justify the cost of the rent but hmv couldn’t sell enough vinyl LPs, CDs, DVDs, merchandise etc and not be able to afford the rent..!
Very happy to hear that there is going to be an hmv in central London again.
Aren’t some ALLEGEDLY a sort of tax dodge or money laundering scheme? Hence the proliferation.
Technically there has always been an HMV in Central London, since the Fopp store at Cambridge Circus is owned & operated by HMV & generally has the same pricing & offers as standard HMV stores. The name over the door is the only significant difference – in much the same way as in bookstores where Waterstones, Foyles, Blackwells, Hatchards etc are all owned & operated by the same hedge-fund so the money you spend all goes to the same place
Horrendous candy store replaced by another.
The last time I was at a HMV was in 2018 – I hadn’t been to a physical store in ages but I wanted a copy of the Roxy Music first album 2CD reissue and thought I’d make a point of giving a physical store rather than an online one the business. That was a mistake. HMV was more or less the only record store left in Belfast (my home) then. It’s a three-floor store. I went in but there was some electrical fault with their escalator so customers had to ask for whatever they wanted at the ground floor desk – the ground floor having long become filled with headphones, gadgets and crap, with music exiled to the upper floors. I asked for the Roxy Music release – to be met by blank faces and staff ringing upstairs to say ‘Bob, have you heard of Roxy Music? Do we have it?’ The embarrassing communications along this line – including shouting up the escalator – went on for some time. Eventually, a copy was brought. It was profoundly humiliating. Had I become a has-been? A doddery old-timer asking if they had the latest George Formby on 78?
From that point on, I don’t think I’ve been in a physical record store – but I’ve curated many physical releases. I love the form – and would love to see physical retailers of it find a viable niche. But the staff have to care. My advice to HMV Oxford Street – a prominent, tourist-centric location that will have a wide demographic of footfall in age and musical interest – is twofold: (1) make sure the staff aren’t people who know nothing about basic popular music history and the contents of the shop; (2) don’t fill the ground floor with crap, as if hiding the music products. If you’re trying to be a record shop, BE a record shop and be proud of it – that’s your point of differentiation these days.
Does make me wonder why anyone with zero interest in music would want to work in an HMV. Or why a manager of a store would recruit staff with no knowledge of what they were supposed to be selling.
No wonder the Internet and streaming is winning over physical – bricks and mortar stores are either not trying or abjectly clueless.
Since most current HMV employees will be on minimum wage i’m not sure why you would expect all the staff to be music graduates with extensive knowledge of the history of every genre of music ? Maybe if the stores paid a better wage they would attract staff with a greater love of the product they sell.
”No wonder the Internet and streaming is winning over physical – bricks and mortar stores are either not trying or abjectly clueless” – please regale me with all the stories of the vast musical knowledge you tapped into the last time you contacted Amazon or Spotify customer services?
I’m with the ghost on this one NT. 99.999% of the time one doesn’t need to contact Amazon customer service, that’s kinda the whole point of on-line shopping. And there is a vast difference between possessing a music theory qualification and being on nodding terms with your shops’ stock. But of course you already know that. Peanuts and monkeys.
The pay for staff in chain record stores has always been pretty poor. However, that did not used to stop them being able to recruit people with decent musical knowledge. Possibly one reason for this was the staff discount. I had friends who worked at HMV & Our Price in the ’80s & ’90s: come pay day a large proportion of their wages went straight back to the shop.
The pay at my first music job (an indie label/distributor warehouse, late 1980s) was lousy, but that was the company had no problem finding employees who wanted to work around music. The main benefits were the employee discount and guest list privileges at most local clubs.
The application process included a written test with questions like:
— name three projects involving former members of Bauhaus;
— what musician/band owns each of the following labels? (1) SST, (2) BYO, (3) Bizarre/Straight …
— what label released the first American Beatles record?
You get the idea.
The process was eccentric, but produced a staff that was knowledgeable and enthusiastic (at least until the struggles to stay afloat on crap wages took their toll, and a worker would quit, only to be replaced by someone else eager to work around music).
Unfortunately you’ve just described most shops in 2023. HMV is no different to Currys, which is the same as Waterstones. The only thing I don’t buy online these days is food.
I lived near Crawley until very recently and was really excited when out of the blue they decided to reopen HMV there at a new location. However a couple of months later I went in to buy the third of last year’s trio of Royksopp albums – Profound Mysteries III – on release day. They didn’t have it! What’s more, the person I dealt with had little idea who Royksopp were! It’s not like they’re even an old band – they are very current.
I agree, HMV’s recruitment drive needs to be better – employ people with a rough knowledge of musical history both past and present. Oh, and the first thing you see upon entering HMV Crawley – and occupying a very large area – is American and Japanese candy…