HMV Set To Call in the Administrators!

[tripleseis]

Primark is incredibly popular and I expect they'll move in to take over the larger HMV stores. The only problem for a fashion retailer is going out of fashion itself (suddenly becoming uncool, for example).

But, the company seems to have been doing well for many years now.

The more expensive clothes shops and 'boutiques' are probably still doing quite well in certain locations, as we have to remember that despite a lot of people cutting back there are still an awful lot of people who are doing very well for themselves (possibly even better in the recession, having used it as an excuse to pay employees less etc) and are still spending huge sums of money.

Ditto around the world, hence news today that the UK car industry is seeing a boom - presumably as more luxury cars are being sold to the new rich people being created on a daily basis.

More affluent areas now have High Streets with local butchers, bakers, cafes, boutiques etc. It seems localism is arising because they areas are more politically motivated to stop chain stores taking over. In the future I can see these local food businesses (like a butchers) adapting an online model of ordering food and then being able to collect it say the next day. Considering the latest food scandal (it's not just Tesco), I can really see people becoming more fed up and returning to the local butcher who knows where his produce comes from.

The UK car industry is being helped by rich Chinese buying British luxury brands like Jaguar, Land Rovers and Range Rovers.

 

[Clip]

Ditto around the world, hence news today that the UK car industry is seeing a boom - presumably as more luxury cars are being sold to the new rich people being created on a daily basis.
.

Not just luxury cars either really. Both Nissan and BMW Mini have announed over a billion pounds worth of investment in their UK plants in the last 8 months. Thats fantastic stuff.

 

[wintonian]

In the future I can see these local food businesses (like a butchers) adapting an online model of ordering food and then being able to collect it say the next day..

Why when you can order direct from the farm have the name of the cow stamped on the package* and all delivered the next day, now?

That might be a slight exaggeration but I bet the reputable ones could tell you it's name/ number if you asked.

 

[tripleseis]

Many butchers are off shoots of farms anyway. Yes, that's a very good idea which I'm sure is already being done.

 

[Clip]

Can buy all your meat needs off QVC.


If you want to be fleeced.

 

[tbtc]

In a couple of years there'll be webcams in fields so you can select the sheep/ cow that you want to eat online and then collect it from the farm shop at the weekend, just like people do now with lobsters in restaurants

(maybe)

 

[wintonian]

"Son, you know daisy the cow we were looking at yesterday, well.."

Hmm.

 

[Heinz57]

Just moving back to HMV, if I may.

I read earlyer that they have two potential buyers. But I was surprised to read that one of them is a chap who was at one point in charge of Comet (and may I add, from the wording of the article, not when they were doing there best). Another potential buyer is GAME, who themselves went into administration last year but managed to claw back. They want to buy about 50 stores.

 

[jon0844]

Just moving back to HMV, if I may.

I read earlyer that they have two potential buyers. But I was surprised to read that one of them is a chap who was at one point in charge of Comet (and may I add, from the wording of the article, not when they were doing there best). Another potential buyer is GAME, who themselves went into administration last year but managed to claw back. They want to buy about 50 stores.

Perhaps all they want are the stores for their locations and won't actually keep them as HMV? I can see the HMV name being worth buying for some sort of online store though, so perhaps the name will live on.

 

[Crossover]

Perhaps all they want are the stores for their locations and won't actually keep them as HMV? I can see the HMV name being worth buying for some sort of online store though, so perhaps the name will live on.

It seems that what happened with Woolworths - that now trades online. There is every chance HMV could indeed go the same way

 

[Roverman]

It seems that what happened with Woolworths - that now trades online. There is every chance HMV could indeed go the same way

Yes, Shop Direct, the people who bought Index and Littlewoods (and promptly ran them down) bought the Woolworths name and launched an online entity selling amongst other items, pick'n'mix sweets which they post to you!

It always bemuses me that businesses no longer have enough cash to trade yet millions can be found to pay an administrator to close them down. They claim to be doing the best for the business but I rarely see that.

It sad but I think the names of Comet, HMV, Blockbuster etc will return as an URL site with the backing of another firm.

 

[Heinz57]

I can see the HMV name being worth buying for some sort of online store though, so perhaps the name will live on.

Yeah I was talking to someone about this only the other day.

I hope the HMV name does live on as an online retailer. I think that if they could live on as an online retailer, and offer simaler online prices to the other online retailers. They could do well, because not only is it the low prices that the consumer wants, but its also the reputation that HMV has.

 

[fgwrich]

It seems that what happened with Woolworths - that now trades online. There is every chance HMV could indeed go the same way

As is, of all businesses - the once infamous Zavvi (now run by cheshire based The Hut Group).

http://www.zavvi.com/home.dept

 

[Heinz57]

I didn't know Zavvi was still active online!

Well thats brightend my day, I used to quite like the Zavvi shops.

After brousing around the site, it looks like the company has evolved a bit, and as well as offering DVDs, games, music etc as the shops did, they have a wider range of gifts, gadgets, toys, clothing and home ware. A little like Amazon, but smaller.

So it looks like its actualy worked out better for them then?

Could this be the future for HMV? An online retailer, but being able to offer a wider and diverse product range than the stores did?

 

[fgwrich]

I didn't know Zavvi was still active online!

Well thats brightend my day, I used to quite like the Zavvi shops.

After brousing around the site, it looks like the company has evolved a bit, and as well as offering DVDs, games, music etc as the shops did, they have a wider range of gifts, gadgets, toys, clothing and home ware. A little like Amazon, but smaller.

So it looks like its actualy worked out better for them then?

Could this be the future for HMV? An online retailer, but being able to offer a wider and diverse product range than the stores did?

True, I'll give The Hut Group something - If HMV Had to go the way of Zavvi, then their the company i'd like to see the business taken over by. Unlike Play.com (now owned by the japanese firm 'The Rakuten Group'), Cheshire based The Hut Group seem to have transformed the ashes of Zavvi into quite a profitable award winning business - Nice to see these days! Not sure how HMV could be intergrated into the business though, perhaps you could have one main business working under two brands?

 

[jon0844]

Play is all but gone now anyway. It's just a marketplace and they won't be stocking/selling their own things anymore.

I'd sooner use Amazon, regardless of the supposed ethics of their tax set up.

 

[Tubefan2013]

Its really sad what's happening to the High streets in general. Soon it will just be supermarkets, Greggs, Payday loan shops, Poundshops ect. I recon online shopping should be reduced or even avoided if possible. Yes its convient but not for retail workers its forcing those out of jobs. High streets 10-20 years ago were bustling full of independent retailers. Now full of crap shops majority boarded up. Its a shame, hope things change soon?

 

[jon0844]

And coffee shops! - which will have to up their game to provide good coffee and a range of sandwiches/buns/pastries/cakes for people who want to relax.

As I'm half Swedish, we are essentially doing what Swedes have done for years.

I do think there's a place for someone to realise that people still want to feel/touch some things before buying but I can't see us going back to where we were for a lot of things that are better ordered online - as no high street is ever going to be able to stock all of the things we want and might as well not bother trying.

 

[wintonian]

As well as coffee and charity (though there are less these days) shops there are an increasing amount of phone shops and good quality restaurants appearing round here.

 

[yorksrob]

The problem I find with online shopping is that if I want a CD, I tend to want to get it there and then. You don't get the instant gratification when you have to wait for something to be sent to you. Unless this click and collect thing takes off of course.

 

[jon0844]

I think the thing is that most people no longer want to buy a CD. I'm not buying CDs from Amazon for delivery, and Play.com presumably weren't selling many either - hence them now becoming just a marketplace for other people to buy/sell.

People are either buying from iTunes, or like me and using Spotify and just paying a flat rate to listen to music I'll never actually own - but at £120 per year, is probably less than I *used* to spend on music when I actually wanted loads of shelves, cupboards and boxes taken up with physical products.

 

[yorksrob]

I think the thing is that most people no longer want to buy a CD. I'm not buying CDs from Amazon for delivery, and Play.com presumably weren't selling many either - hence them now becoming just a marketplace for other people to buy/sell.

People are either buying from iTunes, or like me and using Spotify and just paying a flat rate to listen to music I'll never actually own - but at £120 per year, is probably less than I *used* to spend on music when I actually wanted loads of shelves, cupboards and boxes taken up with physical products.

I did buy and download a few tracks from Spotify before it changed, but generally I prefer to own a physical copy of the music.

 

[richw]

Maybe the high street should review their opening times. In general they are 9-5 openings. I work 9-5 Monday to Friday, and don't want to spend my days off at weekends going round town, would choose family activities with my kids. I therefore currently buy everything in the evening at the supermarket at same time as my grocery shopping. If the shops in town were open later I would consider spending an evening after work going round the shops in town buying items. The stores that open till 8 or later tend to be the only places I shop these days, so supermarkets, out of town retail parks (who I hear are reported in general to be booming in sales) and the internet.

 

[WestCoast]

It does seem as though we've lost quite a few big names in these recessionary times. I take an interest in the retail scene and it does sadden me to see once strongly performing companies and British institutions fail. Yes, these institutions did arguably put smaller, independent players out of business in times gone by, but they must have offered the customer what they wanted at some point in time. They also kept thousands of people in employment and gave people great memories.

Of course, His Master's Voice didn't move quick enough in the digital age. HMV.com could have been the website to download Mp3s and films from - but they moved into that market too late and not aggressively enough.

Yes, Shop Direct, the people who bought Index and Littlewoods (and promptly ran them down) bought the Woolworths name and launched an online entity selling amongst other items, pick'n'mix sweets which they post to you!

I've never had a good experience with any of Shop Direct's ventures, their reviews are also generally quite negative. I ordered a Christmas present from Very.co.uk, they promised it was in stock and would be delivered for a certain date. It wasn't and was delivered over 10 days late.

I do hear that Argos is doing quite well with their click & collect service and they are trying hard to compete against the likes of Amazon and Tesco. Argos seemed to acquire a downmarket image among some groups, but I have to say I've been impressed with them recently. I order a lot of accessories for gadgets from them and have always found them competitively priced and easy to deal with if something goes wrong. Obviously, YMMV but that's my experience.

 

[Clip]

True, I'll give The Hut Group something - If HMV Had to go the way of Zavvi, then their the company i'd like to see the business taken over by. Unlike Play.com (now owned by the japanese firm 'The Rakuten Group'), Cheshire based The Hut Group seem to have transformed the ashes of Zavvi into quite a profitable award winning business - Nice to see these days! Not sure how HMV could be intergrated into the business though, perhaps you could have one main business working under two brands?

Oh how deliciously ironic that would actually be given that HMV helped the demise of Zavvi on the high street

 

[Anon Mouse]

Its really sad what's happening to the High streets in general. Soon it will just be supermarkets, Greggs, Payday loan shops, Poundshops ect. I recon online shopping should be reduced or even avoided if possible. Yes its convient but not for retail workers its forcing those out of jobs. High streets 10-20 years ago were bustling full of independent retailers. Now full of crap shops majority boarded up. Its a shame, hope things change soon?

You have just summed up North Shields, Wallsend & Gateshead there

 

[Heinz57]

Is there light at the end of the tunnel for HMV? After reveiwing the financial situation of HMV, Deloitte have said that from Tuesday the stores will once again be accepting gift vouchers.

Also, Hilco (who bought HMV Canada a couple of years back) are interested in purchasing the company.

From the BBC...

The administrators of HMV have said that the music and DVD retailer will start accepting gift vouchers in stores from Tuesday.

Deloitte had previously said that gift cards could not be redeemed in stores, leading to anger among many customers.

Deloitte said it was able to honour the vouchers after assessing HMV's financial position.

Meanwhile restructuring specialist Hilco has emerged as the frontrunner to save HMV, reports say.

An industry consortium of music labels and film studios, including Universal Music and Sony, are believed to favour Hilco, according to newspaper reports.

Hilco bought out HMV Canada from parent HMV group in 2011 for £2m.

Full story - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21118711

 

[fgwrich]

Looks like things are on the up for HMV Then. Not just today's announcement by Deloitte, but this follows yesterdays news from the industry published in NME:

NME
Major record labels assemble rescue package for struggling HMV

Universal Music, Warner Music and Sony cut the price of CDs and DVDs

A consortium of major music labels and film studios are reportedly assembling a rescue package to save HMV from going out of business.

According to The Sunday Times, Universal Music, Warner Music and Sony are set to cut the price of CDs and DVDs, and give the failing retailer generous credit terms, to help it get back on its feet after falling into administration.

Universal Studios and Warner Studios are also reported to be behind the deal to prevent the company from going under. Industry sources claim the industry goliaths are desperate to keep a specialist high street outlet, such as HMV, to prevent cut-throat pricing from supermarkets and online stores.

A source told the newspaper:

They don’t want their only choice to be Tesco or Amazon


On Friday (January 18), it was reported that video games retailer Game had expressed an interest in buying HMV. Deloitte, who were called in to administrate the collapsed retailer on Tuesday (January 15) putting 4,000 jobs at risk, says it has received over 50 expressions of interest in HMV. These include a "broad range" of parties including wealthy individuals, private equity groups and Game – which is targeting as many as 50 shops.

According to The Sunday Times report, the music and film industry consortium are believed to be favouring a bid by Hilco, an investor that specialises in struggling consumer businesses.

Full story here - http://www.nme.com/news/hmv/68267

So hopefully in the voice of Professor Farnsworth, Good News Everyone!

[youtube]HHfOejlvVsY[/youtube]

 

[jon0844]

It was said from the outset that the music industry saw this as a much bigger problem (to them) than most people who have long given up shopping there.

If a music industry-led buyout is made, that's good for jobs, but they better have some plans to 'fix' things or else it's just buying another year or two.

 

[Oswyntail]

A source told the newspaper:

They don’t want their only choice to be Tesco or Amazon

Is anyone else slightly puzzled by this? So long as they ship their product, why do they worry about choice for the consumer? Or do they think that, with an HMV outlet, they will be able to match the purchasing muscle of the big boys and put them in their place? Or do they fondly believe that the purchasing public is so hooked on their product that they will still buy it if Tesco and Amazon are forced out, leaving the floor to HMV at inflated prices.
Or is the music industry really run by the naive types (akin to businessmen who buy football clubs) who romantically hanker after the days of the old record store?