Those with a better retail knowledge please feel free to explain the rationale behind the following. I dropped in to the Wolverhampton HMV this week to find that next door (yes next door) was a new shop called Cherry Bombs selling t-shirts, mugs, water bottles, books etc – exactly the same branded tat filling the non-music shelves of HMV. Not only that but the tat was EXACTLY THE SAME. Not only that but the shop fittings were EXACTLY THE SAME. I know Boots set up next to independent chemists back in the day but this seems bizzarre. Its way wierder than that. Cherry Bombs (stapline: No Music, Just Merch) is a HMV initiative. What da hell? As my offspring would say. 1. Do they think that the very presence of music itself puts people off going in and their focus groups were full of people saying ‘I’d really like a Kurt Cobain poster/Primal Scream mug/Jean Luc Godard mousemat but I’m worried people will judge me for not actually knowing anything about their music or films’. 2. Are the queues at HMV so long that people are giving up on buying their tat due to the crowds flocking the tills with » Continue Reading.
HMV.com
I ordered something* online from HMV’s website, arisen phoenix-like from the ashes. You can now pay with PayPal, too.
I had to enter a new password.
I will let you know how things pan out.
(*) when I say “something” I mean, of course, a half-speed mastered LP.
Some actual good news…Fopp Manchester is back!
The Manchester branch had lain dormant since the HMV takeover in February. However the signage was left intact, and still seemed to have stock, fixtures and fittings inside so I did wonder whether negotiations were happening. Sure enough the store twitter feed suddenly sprang back to life a few days ago and Fopp has indeed reopened. It’s a lovely shop on two floors (previously occupied by Piccadilly Records) and had been my go-to place for a lunchtime browse for many years and so I’m mighty pleased it’s back and looking forward to handing my pocket money over the counter.
HMV Vinyl Week and the like.
It’s getting to that time of year again where news of the now-familiar vinyl promotions from HMV, Tesco and Sainsbury’s are starting to appear, presumably partly with Fathers Day in mind. As well as the predictable Quo, Clash and Iggy Pop offerings, one of HMV’s titles this year is Bill Wyman’s 1982 self titled LP – on purple wax, naturally. An odd choice, or is it just me?
Also, will anyone here be grabbing any of these “exclusive” records from either HMV or the canny bandwagonning supermarkets?
http://www.hmv.com/music/hmv-vinyl-week-exclusive-vinyl-editions-second-reveal
HMV (again)
I often walk past the former HMV store in Moorgate ( in the City of That London) and wonder how much longer the reborn company has left in it, what with Apple Music, Spotify, Netflix, You Tube et al, let alone pirate downloads. even the supermarkets don’t seem to be that bothered about selling shiny silver discs in quite the same way they were before. In an idle moment, I had a look to see how HMV are doing and was surprised, nay astonished, to find that the company is in rude health. How can this be? I almost never go in to my local store as Spotify/Netflix/Amazon are able to provide most of what I need. What’s going on? Are HMV being fattened up for a strategically timely sale or is it really still possible to sell music and film on the high street? I wouldn’t want to, see them go again but I had them marked as another lame duck struggling against the inevitable (see also Morrison’s. I give it five years or less before they’re bought by Aldi or Lidl.)
