HMV the latest to call in the administrators

[steveo_mcg]

Never said there was.

Just looking at the governments results on its attempts to close down loop holes... Ultimately the world is very unfair and the more money you have the easier it is not to pay it away as tax.

[rollo]

Should companies really have to support governments in the first place, taxation on business is a reason many are struggling.

[steveo_mcg]

Should the populous? After all I'd be nearly 25% better off I didn't have to pay upfront taxes, my money would go 20% further if I didn't have to pay VAT...

[fdbh96]

Honestly I can see why they went out of business. I bought a cd from them on the 9th of december, and it didn't arrive till the 24th! Ordered it at Asda to 'click and collect' in an hours time. I only used hmv because I thought they were the place to go for music but asda was exactly the same price.

[aLtikal]

I think HMV just stagnated. They didn't offer anything that intrigued me; and I guess I would fit in one of their key target consumer groups. Every time I walked past there shop I would just say to myself "no point going in there because I can just download everything I want". Essentially - they didn't diversify themselves enough to warrant going inside the shop.

I don't think they were very good for prices either - to me they never popped up as being a "bargain" retailer when compared to Amazon or others - they were never in the "Ill check their prices - because usually they are pretty competitive" list.

Its like they saw there profits nosedive for the last 2+ years and did nothing about it. What did they expect?

[daveh84]

Been coming for a while unfortunately, another one bites the dust.

[KidMod-Southpaw]

Nespresso shops are awesome:


Every time I go to the HMV Wigan just for a little look, I always leave disgusted by the lack of, and insane price of everything and the fact that the staff are utterly clueless at everything. Going off on a tangent, it's huge retail places like this that have destroyed Wigan. Big, ridiculously priced retailers catering to the mainstream of Wiagn who will fork out for whatever is in front of them. Places with some of the worst staff attitudes and customer service I've seen.

I'm thankful there's still some of the smaller shops and jewelers in Wigan who offer truly personal service and help when in the shop, from the moment you walk in, to opening the door for you when you leave. In that way, Wigan used to be a brilliant shopping experience, because almost every kind of shop was like that. But now everyone just marches in to the grand arcade, before stopping at "Maccies" (Mcdonalds is bad enough without calling it that).

I don't know where I'm going with this, I read the posts about standard of service in the retail stores and thought this may be relevant, as this is the whole of Wiagn becoming, not just one store.

Either way, I'm not at all saddened to see them go. Things like music, I much prefer to buy online anyway. If I ever need another pocket watch chain, then there's still a few lovely shops remaining in Wigan. Hopefully they'll outlast the grand arcade.

[DXR_13KE]

Whale oil lamps were the norm in the past. Then something better showed up and what was once a booming industry died...

[Cei]

HMV lost its appeal for me back around 2008 - I used to go in regularly and browse the latest BluRay films (this is when they fitted on a single row of shelves or less), and I could be confident HMV would have them.

As time passed, I noticed they simply had less and less new stock. I could find new releases, but archive (and really, BD archive is all of a year or two old stuff) disappeared as they seemed to be unwilling to extend the space given over to BD, yet kept aisles and aisles of DVDs that I doubt anybody bought. It didn't matter that I would be dropping £15 per film rather than £7, they appeared to want those cheaper sales.

I stopped going in - nothing in their stores interested me. Their sales were still expensive, and their attempts to diversify into gadgets (tablets, iPods, headphones etc) and books were dire. I can't have a proper buying experience in a store where I can barely fit down the aisle because it's so packed. The dark decor never helped either.

Sorry HMV, you just didn't evolve when you needed to.

[Tynecider]

Originally Posted by steveo_mcg

Should the populous? After all I'd be nearly 25% better off I didn't have to pay upfront taxes, my money would go 20% further if I didn't have to pay VAT...

+1

[Cleggmeister]

Originally Posted by DXR_13KE

Whale oil lamps were the norm in the past. Then something better showed up and what was once a booming industry died...

Nah, they're doing just fine in Dunwall

By the way I agree pretty much with the sentiment here. Funnily enough my role is (largely) retail development in the specialist independent sector (audio/hifi). Those retailers who are making the experience more special and service orientated are doing the best. Those who "pile it high and sell it cheap" or operate in the "middle ground" are really suffering, and I mean really suffering.

It's no longer viable to open the door in the morning and wait for customers. It's also no longer viable to be expect customers to be interested in your store/wares unless the entire experience is up there with the John Lewis' and Apples of the high street.

We are, unfortunately, a nation of shopkeepers and not retailers, and there is a huge difference...

[Cthippo]

About the only places I enjoy shopping (as opposed to going there to buy stuff) are the second hand places like Goodwill and Value Village because you never know what you'll find. Sometimes you don't even know what it is you've found.

Most stores the inventory never changes, it's the same stuff time after time. For a food store that's fine, but for any sort of commodity item it's easier to stay home and order it. Once in a while you need something now, not in a week or two when it shows up, but that's not enough to keep somewhere in business.

We have a local hardware store that has almost everything and a staff that collectively knows everything about everything. I went in there the other day to get some bolts for my British made Pyrahna kayak. I held up the screw I took out of it and said "I need some of these in stainless with a cap head". The guy says, from a good 10 feet away, "Looks like a M6. I have the shorter ones in stainless or black, but the longer ones I only have in black". I was all

Contrast that with going to Home Depot or Lowes where you'll be lucky to find someone on the staff who knows what isle the screws are on, much less what a M6x35mm stainless cap head bolt is. At Home Depot they fire everyone who's been there more than 2 years to keep costs down by not paying raises. The problem is, they're prices aren't that much lower than the independent place, and are more expensive than ordering online.

I guess the point is, if you're in commodity retail, you can either compete strictly on price, and probably lose, or compete on experience by having actually helpful staff who know their arse from a hole in the ground.

[NethLyn]

Originally Posted by rollo

Even the biggest electronic retailer is still struggling with net loses of 154million ( dixons) Hence all the mergers with pc world stores and currys going into one shop. ( which means less jobs)

The Smartphone has changed alot most shoppers now have one and are willing to use it to search out the bargins online.

Excellent thread and hopefully three months isn't too long to bump it. Dixons Group have always taken those tough decisions to close stores, the tablet boom should adjust their losses now that even the diehards have flat TVs. Whilst I will no longer have a HMV store, as long as the HMV website re-opens and the prices are the same with offers, which they started to do but far too late, I'll be happy with that. 141 stores will stay open until Hilco sorts out the loss making ones and carries out a final cut.

The loyalty card? Fringe benefit to keep hold of it for the customer data, I suppose Hilco think the info justifies the admin cost of the scheme but it needs to be simplified and not just be about trying to get people into the stores.

Like GAME they've got their second chance, Hilco want the group to turn around like Canada, hopefully the relaunch will be complete by May Day as Play (IIRC) goes to the full marketplace by mid-April, so will compete more with Amazon Marketplace and Ebay and be a second shop window for Zavvi.