HMV to close 60 stores (Irish stores affected as well)

seanbmc

I found some games in HMV to be cheaper than they would be in Gamestop or other game stores.

Aoiferz

Dravokivich wrote: »

I'm more interested in a streaming solution as opposed to a "Rental by Post" solution.

http://www.blinkbox.com/ Is a pretty good website for streaming, they don't have everything but they have some good deals.

sitstill wrote: »

They seem to have stopped giving student discounts lately too which no doubt drove a lot of students to downloading rather than buying in their stores.

They seem to have made it ridiculously difficult to get a student discount there, supposedly you need a special HMV student card but they never seem to have any of them.

krudler

I used to work for HMV, and I never agreed with their back catalogue prices either, but when they have sales they have great sales, I've gotten stuff dirst cheap over the years (30% staff discount too on sale stuff, they were basically paying me in dvds at one time :pac: ) but since I left there I rarely buy stuff in shops anymore, I do buy the occasional cheap dvd and the have fantastic prices on new games, usually up to a tenner less than most places on launch day, pity to see it go they should have copped on and started dropping prices sooner.

FatherTed

grizzly wrote: »

I'm surprised that it lasted this long. I've not bought a music CD in 5 years, since I've digitised my collection it doesn't make sense. Sure it's nice having a physical copy but it's nicer having shelf space and €€€.

I was thinking the same thing. Do people actually still buy CD's?

RobitTV

FatherTed wrote: »

I was thinking the same thing. Do people actually still buy CD's?

Unlikely, so many stuff to download these days for free

Coriolanus

The Waltzing Consumer wrote: »

Ah they ain't as bad as Tower Records when it comes to hipsters, HMV is just full of students.

Back on topic. F**k them, they ripped us off for years, and I laughed when I saw it is the same company which owns Waterstones, another company which overcharges and has ripped us off for years. Yeah, yeah, pity about the jobs, but it is an awful company full of annoying security guards following you and unfriendly staff avoiding you. Not exactly a surprise people don't shop there.

Download everything!

Cop the fúck on. If you're going to waltz around the shop while shopping then I'd follow you too if I was a guard.

Venom

That_Guy wrote: »

That's a shame. I don't get the people saying that they're "rip off merchants" because to be honest I find them quite reasonable for their prices especially for games. I've always found them to be cheaper for franchise games such as COD, FIFA etc.

Boxsets are very reasonable too. Picked up the Alien Quadrilogy 2 years ago for €20.

I have seen single season box sets for a crazy amount but if you search hard enough you'll probably get 3 or 4 seasons for around the same price as one season.

Have never had a problem with the staff there. Always willing to help.

One thing that pisses me off though.... Their placing of CD's in wrong genre sections annoys me greatly.

Iv picked up some awesome movie boxsets from HMV in the last few years but those are bargain value versions of those DVD collections and not just HMV being good value. Normal boxed sets from TV shows still cost a fortune.

HMV are not the main problem tho, its the music and media companies who still charge an arm and a leg for CD's and DVD's. Anyone reading this thread more the likely has a DVD drive and can buy blank DVD's for around 50c yet the music companies still charge between 10-20 quid for a product that's vastly overpriced in a market hit with a recession and an outdated form of distribution.

_sparkie_

RobitTV wrote: »

Unlikely, so many stuff to download these days for free

i still buy cd's.

Dan Dare

_sparkie_ wrote: »

i still buy cd's.

As do I.

citizen_p

i used to buy 3 dvds every week or two, 30 for 3 etc... had about 120 dvds at the end of a year.


now i just go in there to make a list of films and albums to download when i go home.
why, because i cant afford €20 to buy an album with 2 songs i like on it, or a dvd that i can only watch with the disc and cant put onto my ipod etc...

KylieWyley

can't say I'm upset...

torrentz for music + movies!

amazon for boxsets + curios!

citizen_p

KylieWyley wrote: »

can't say I'm upset...

torrentz for music + movies!

amazon for boxsets + curios!

whats a curios

CorkMan

Have to say i'm glad. I remember getting 2 CD's back in 2002, €46 for 2 of them. That is a weeks shopping like!

I can't figure how it is sustainable anyways. CD's and DVDs are no longer being bought anywhere near as before, I think video game are the biggest income ATM as they are still very hear to buy through a console online.

desertcircus

To all the people advocating downloading:

It's your fault that bands are finding it harder to make a living and produce interesting music. Record labels are opting to focus on music they can sell to kids, because kids either don't have the savvy or aren't allowed to use BitTorrent. Touring is a way to make money for established acts, but how do you make a living touring for the first couple of years?

There's a reason that 60% of hit records in the UK last year were made by graduates of fee-paying schools; they're the only ones who can afford to earn nothing while they try to make it.

ScumLord

I've paid for online services like last.fm (until I found groveshark), it's much more reasonable to pay a subscription and what watch you like when you like. I hate Cds and DVDs now complete waste of space you have to take out one to play another they're a dead media.

RobitTV

I Can now Confirm that HMV Stores WILL be closing in The Republic of ireland and the UK (On 9pm RTE News)

Nodster

Gateaux - better get cracking with that €40 card pressie then :eek:

rednik

Lord of the rings trilogy on blu ray.

HMV €79.99

Sendit €20.49

My dilemma is where do I buy it?

RobitTV

Everyone if you have any Gift cards, Spend then NOW! we dont know what stores will be closing and how early yet! so everyone this could be your final chance to get the thing you want before there gone off the shelves, and the prices get higher!

The Waltzing Consumer

RobitTV wrote: »

Everyone if you have any Gift cards, Spend then NOW! we dont know what stores will be closing and how early yet! so everyone this could be your final chance to get the thing you want before there gone off the shelves, and the prices get higher!

Do you work for HMV?

HMV has 379 stores in the UK and Ireland. If they are closing 60 of them, there may be a couple left so your panic attack is not needed.

RobitTV

The Waltzing Consumer wrote: »

Do you work for HMV?

HMV has 379 stores in the UK and Ireland. If they are closing 60 of them, there may be a couple left so your panic attack is not needed.

Yeah but For people who have a Local HMV Spend your gift card etc..

Because when its closed You might have to travel to dublin or somewhere miles away.

RobitTV

The worst thing about this is That more job losses, and retail closures, this has been the worst New year so far 5 days in and Loads of shops closing and job losses.

RobitTV

HMV Announced a while Ago that there flagship Store in oxford street will close.

OPENROAD

RobitTV wrote: »

HMV Announced a while Ago that there flagship Store in oxford street will close.

Seriously :eek:

ThisRegard

CorkMan wrote: »

That is a weeks shopping like!

So that's when talking and typing stuff on the interweb, do Cork people even put the word 'like' after every thought running through their mind like ?

JONJO THE MISER

In the past i would rarely buy dvd's or boxsets and i would of never brought them in H.M.V, i never download just stream but recently i have been buying movies and books from Amazon and i can not believe the value, if only more brick and mortar stores were like them instead of trying to rip people off then they would survive.

kensutz

RobitTV wrote: »

HMV Announced a while Ago that there flagship Store in oxford street will close.

Meh!

RobitTV

OPENROAD wrote: »

Seriously :eek:

Yeah, thats how bad things are For them at the moment!! :cool:

ThisRegard

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

In the past i would rarely buy dvd's or boxsets and i would of never brought them in H.M.V, i never download just stream but recently i have been buying movies and books from Amazon and i can not believe the value, if only more brick and mortar stores were like them instead of trying to rip people off then they would survive.

Basic economics, they're two completely different business models, if Amazon opened bricks and mortar stores they'd no longer be as cheap.

kensutz

279 stores between Ireland and the UK. Doesn't exactly say that all the Irish stores are closing!

ScumLord

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

if only more brick and mortar stores were like them instead of trying to rip people off then they would survive.

But Amazon is just a warehouse off a motorway somewhere. The only reason it's cheap is because they don't have to deal with customers and can pack stuff in to the rafter and let machines do all the work of stacking and shipping.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AVpuCMIk2A

That factory isn't that advanced ebuyers looks better but as you can see it's not a customer friendly place.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1aNPfNEGRQ

Meself

General Zod wrote: »

do you live in OHHHH VIENNAAAAAA (du du du)

Take a bow my good man, that was fabulous !

RobitTV

kensutz wrote: »

279 stores between Ireland and the UK. Doesn't exactly say that all the Irish stores are closing!

we need a List of the store Closures in Ireland, Then we can see what the situation is, But no annoucemnts have been made at the Moment, hopefully there will be a list soon.

LizT

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

In the past i would rarely buy dvd's or boxsets and i would of never brought them in H.M.V, i never download just stream but recently i have been buying movies and books from Amazon and i can not believe the value, if only more brick and mortar stores were like them instead of trying to rip people off then they would survive.

In fairness, Amazon can afford to do it cheaper because (afaik and correct me if I'm wrong) they just have the one warehouse and they ship all their goods from there. HMV have to pay rent, utilities etc on all their shops so that will push up the price.

I like HMV myself. Usually I just download from iTunes but if there's a particular album I want, I would usually buy it from HMV. Their DVD prices have definitely come down, although I still use amazon. But if I was in town anyway I wouldn't mind spending an extra few euro to get the cd/game/ dvd I wanted as opposed to waiting for it to arrive from amazon.

OPENROAD

lizt wrote: »

In fairness, Amazon can afford to do it cheaper because (afaik and correct me if I'm wrong) they just have the one warehouse and they ship all their goods from there. HMV have to pay rent, utilities etc on all their shops so that will push up the price.

I like HMV myself. Usually I just download from iTunes but if there's a particular album I want, I would usually buy it from HMV. Their DVD prices have definitely come down, although I still use amazon. But if I was in town anyway I wouldn't mind spending an extra few euro to get the cd/game/ dvd I wanted as opposed to waiting for it to arrive from amazon.

I assume you do a price comparison first?

LizT

ThisRegard wrote: »

Basic economics, they're two completely different business models, if Amazon opened bricks and mortar stores they'd no longer be as cheap.

ScumLord wrote: »

But Amazon is just a warehouse off a motorway somewhere. The only reason it's cheap is because they don't have to deal with customers and can pack stuff in to the rafter and let machines do all the work of stacking and shipping.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AVpuCMIk2A

That factory isn't that advanced ebuyers looks better but as you can see it's not a customer friendly place.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1aNPfNEGRQ

Point i was trying to make, but said better.

RobitTV

This is the Latest---

"The stores closures have not been decided yet but HMV Group spokesman Heather Murdoch said the axe will fall on areas where there are many stores in close proximity"

... So this basically means Areas such as Dublin and cork may Face the worst of it, But ireland has Less then 20 hmv stores And They dont make the same amount of profit compared to the UK Ones. so i say a few Hmv,S in ireland may close, but who knows until we get the list.

Also the HMV Store in Brighton,UK has been saved from the Axe i think.

LizT

OPENROAD wrote: »

I assume you do a price comparison first?

Nope. If I want the item and it's reasonably priced, I'm happy enough buying it. HMV are usually not that much more expensive than other shops. I'd only buy new release album that I wanted, or a cheap DVD or two and maybe a game (not altogether!). Those kinds of items would be similarly priced everywhere.

If it was something like a box set, I normally wouldn't pay over 10-20 euro (depending on the show) when it first comes out, because the price will always be reduced.

LizT

RobitTV wrote: »

This is the Latest---

"The stores closures have not been decided yet but HMV Group spokesman Heather Murdoch said the axe will fall on areas where there are many stores in close proximity"

... So this basically means Areas such as Dublin and cork may Face the worst of it, But ireland has Less then 20 hmv stores And They dont make the same amount of profit compared to the UK Ones. so i say a few Hmv,S in ireland may close, but who knows until we get the list.

Also the HMV Store in Brighton,UK has been saved from the Axe i think.

Grafton Street and Henry Street stores are in close proximity. One of them may be in trouble...

OPENROAD

RobitTV wrote: »

Yeah, thats how bad things are For them at the moment!! :cool:

Have to say am surprised with that.

OPENROAD

lizt wrote: »

Nope. If I want the item and it's reasonably priced, I'm happy enough buying it. HMV are usually not that much more expensive than other shops. I'd only buy new release album that I wanted, or a cheap DVD or two and maybe a game (not altogether!). Those kinds of items would be similarly priced everywhere.

If it was something like a box set, I normally wouldn't pay over 10-20 euro (depending on the show) when it first comes out, because the price will always be reduced.

Have to say I can't remember the last cd/dvd I bought in an store.

I always pop in just out of curiosity to compare prices, last cd I bought was 18 euro V 10 Euro online, obviously I bought it online

thetonynator

Dan Dare wrote: »

As do I.

Me three!

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

In the past i would rarely buy dvd's or boxsets and i would of never brought them in H.M.V, i never download just stream but recently i have been buying movies and books from Amazon and i can not believe the value, if only more brick and mortar stores were like them instead of trying to rip people off then they would survive.

They dont have a fraction of the costs . . prime retail space rents aren't cheap, and neither are staff and security and everything else they have to pay for . . .

RobitTV

lizt wrote: »

Grafton Street and Henry Street stores are in close proximity. One of them may be in trouble...

I Think henry street HMV Will be closed.

Reason: People have reported in the past That the Grafton street Store is usually quite busy, So they must make a good profit then i suppose.

The thing about the Henry street store is that Many people might not know its even there, Because grafton street store is so near.

kensutz

And living in the north side and shopping on that side it's handier to get to Henry Street.:rolleyes:

RobitTV

OPENROAD wrote: »

Have to say am surprised with that.

So am i, They only released the Figures this morning, I Was watching sky news and heard They were closing 60 stores in UK And ireland!

LizT

RobitTV wrote: »

I Think henry street HMV Will be closed.

Reason: People have reported in the past That the Grafton street Store is usually quite busy, So they must make a good profit then i suppose.

The thing about the Henry street store is that Many people might not know its even there, Because grafton street store is so near.

Henry Street store would be my default store when I'm in Dublin, but that's because I usually would shop around there. Grafton Street is nicer because it's not as cramped but apart from that it's much of a muchness!

OPENROAD

RobitTV wrote: »

So am i, They only released the Figures this morning, I Was watching sky news and heard They were closing 60 stores in UK And ireland!

Yup have been reading about it for the last few weeks in some Investment magazines who had them down as a sell on the stock market.

Just surprised they would close the Oxford Street one, they do have a store further up Oxford Street, beyond Oxford Circus and they are in Selfridges also.

RobitTV

OPENROAD wrote: »

Yup have been reading about it for the last few weeks in some Investment magazines who had them down as a sell on the stock market.

Just surprised they would close the Oxford Street one, they do have a store further up Oxford Street, beyond Oxford Circus and they are in Selfridges also.

Yeah just saw it on a Article there closing the oxford street one, i was very shocked by this, Because if you have a shop in Oxford street you will litteraly have Money pooring out of your ears

RobitTV

Dieing to know Which ones will be Closing. :cool:

Oranage2

RobitTV wrote: »

I Think henry street HMV Will be closed.

Reason: People have reported in the past That the Grafton street Store is usually quite busy, So they must make a good profit then i suppose.

The thing about the Henry street store is that Many people might not know its even there, Because grafton street store is so near.

grafton street has the highest rents in all of Dublin, I'd have money on the grafton street HMV one closing