Posted January 5, 2011 It makes me sad that there are basically no such things as toy shops in this country now. Any that exist now are too small to offer any kind of range of anything. Its sad. Toys R Us and LEGO stores are really the only big places now. :/ Entertainer doesn't count because of their ridiculous 20% markup on everything. Its ...embarararasising. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 It makes me sad that there are basically no such things as toy shops in this country now. Any that exist now are too small to offer any kind of range of anything. Its sad. What about the laminated book of dreams ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 HMV's prices are pretty ludicrous. I bought the Love Hina compelete collection from amazon for like £15. I went into an Edinburgh HMV on holiday and I saw it for £50, but then that store is HUGE but still. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 HMV's prices are pretty ludicrous. I bought the Love Hina compelete collection from amazon for like £15. I went into an Edinburgh HMV on holiday and I saw it for £50, but then that store is HUGE but still. This! If anime was at a fair price point I'd be far more likely to actually buy it... *cough* Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 I hate. Yeah HMV randomly price things that aren't particularly popular (presumably to make the most out of a single sale), but they have loads of stuff. Supermarkets only have the chart DVDs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 What kind of complaint is that... Because they always sound miserable and don't want to be there. I hate. Yeah HMV randomly price things that aren't particularly popular (presumably to make the most out of a single sale), but they have loads of stuff. Supermarkets only have the chart DVDs. I suppose HMV has 1 good point. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 If the HMV in Bournemouth goes, now Borders is gone, there's nowhere for CDs and DVDs Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 Tower Records > HMV bargain bookshops (with new books) > Waterstones Can't say I'm surprised, I haven't set foot in a HMV in over a year because everything has always seemed stupidly overpriced to me. I buy DVDs and CDs rarely, but I generally buy them online. As for books, Book Depository win so hard with free worldwide shipping. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 It's called the internet. It is the future. Bargains to be found galore. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 (edited) I don't get the HMV hate :/ I always love going to HMV when I'm in town. I've bought most of my CD's, which are...pretty old Jazz records and HMV always have the best collection and even update the jazz section from time to time. It's so handy as they aren't exactly popular in other shops I mostly go there to drift aimlessly though, I could easily spend over an hour in there. So please don't close!! D: Edited January 5, 2011 by Frank Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 Love the vast selection of DVDs and Blu Rays in HMV. Plus something you can find some real gems at pretty cool prices. Othertimes things just seem overpriced and expensive, when compared with online shopping. I'm guessing the above points have already been echoed during this thread. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 I imagine the ones that close will be in major cities where there are several branches already, or where a particular store is just not selling enough to justify being open. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 Ok I am in no way trying to justify the high prices they charge BUT there is a reason for it and its not purely greed. I worked for HMV for 2 years in 2 different branches in a number of roles. My last role was as a stockroom controller. During this time I spent a lot of time in front of computers checking stock levels and prices etc... HMV simply pay way too much per unit for some of the back catalogue items...We are talking like £15 for some of the back catalogue CD's you see them selling at £18. Whereas when I worked at WHSmith and was in charge of the CD department we didn't pay anywhere near the crazy unit prices to the suppliers I saw at HMV. Why I hear you ask? Simple reason is they do not have good relationships with a lot of suppliers. Even as far back as when I left over 3 years ago they were having internal initiatives to attempt to improve their relationships to get better prices for new releases so they could compete with supermarkets and at that point other high street stores like Virgin/Woolworths/WHSmith and Music Zone... They are a very brash company who flex their weight and know they can both with customers and suppliers and its coming back round to bite them. Suppliers get pissed at HMV for sending so many items back on returns etc...trying to bully them to lower prices, only stocking back catalogue items in tiny quantities, also even I know with my store not settling their accounts on time...theres so many reasons... Also their board members used to be a bunch of twats who loved to live it up and show off how their wealth etc...not that we complained when we had open bars in Ministry of Sound clubs etc...whilst chatting away to them but you could tell they had an air of arogance about their position as market leader. I certainly hope my local branch isn't one of the ones to shut down as means a lot of my friends will lose their jobs and there will be no where other than Asda to buy dvds from in my town centre. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 5, 2011 flameboy: I understand that cost prices form the base of retail prices, but as a broke-ass student, I don't care: I'm not going to go "well, I know they don't mean to charge this much, so I'll buy it instead of looking for a lower price elsewhere!". I hadn't thought about the jobs situation though, that's not good I don't get the HMV hate :/I always love going to HMV when I'm in town. I've bought most of my CD's, which are...pretty old Jazz records and HMV always have the best collection and even update the jazz section from time to time. It's so handy as they aren't exactly popular in other shops I mostly go there to drift aimlessly though, I could easily spend over an hour in there. So please don't close!! D: I suppose it depends on particular stores...I've always found one of the Dublin stores to be a bit patchy in terms of keeping it well stocked. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 They have delved into second hand games, I'm not too sure how good that service is from them. And I completely agree with what you said about consumers knowing they can get a bargain else where. I went shopping yesterday and before I went out I jotted down prices of things I was going to see if I could find. In the end I bought a dvd from HMV it was £5 more than online, but I had a £10 discount voucher that made it worthwhile. Had I not had that, they'd have lost a sale. To be fair it's not just HMV, GAME charge £34.99 for 12 months Xbox Live on their website, to buy it instore you have to pay £39.99. A five pound markup just for going to the shop. Well yeah Game are the original and worst, but they kinda weren't relevant to mention in my original post :p, I DID have a feeling HMV dabbled in second hand(thanks for everyone needing to point it out despite my expressed doubt) but I still believe they don't have enough of the market to really do that. Game didn't once, really, it's just they pushed it really hard and it kind of took off, I guess. I grew up well reluctant to anything but brand new, but after working in game, I'm all about second hand(mainly off tinternets now, and only in a decent condition). HMV originally, imo, built their name on being the people of choice. Not as in of consumer's choice per se, but in that they offered a MASSIVE choice, CDs, VHS, DVDs(when they hit), man, HMV(and in some respects in my mind, MVC their main competitor at the time) offered such a massive range of choice they cornered the market with it, sort of. These days though, they're vastly outperformed on those counts, and they need to adapt and keep up, or go belly up. As for those concerned about their local HMV closing 'because it's the only decent local place for entertainment' etc, I'd say if they had any sense they'd be keeping those ones open cos they have a market sorted, it's the hight street ones competing with 5 other stores within 100m that need shutting, cos it seems they just can't keep up. However, that's my opinion, even if those stores are struggling they might look at it in absolute terms of those stores pulling more actual money in(due to increased human traffic etc), and shut down the back end ones. Credit details vs Cloud Storage(if i'm understanding rightly) are not equate-able, one is a payment method one is a product storage/distro method, surely that's not the same thing? The strangest thing for me is that all these people complaining that if their local store closed it'd be the last decent local place with choice/range etcetc, what's wrong with tinternets? Shouldn't you be more inclined to internet shopping? I find it weird because I have so many shops around here that if any closed down another that sold the same product would be equally close by probably, yet I very rarely do any high street shopping and mostly shop online? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 I only buy items from HMV that are in the clearance, have managed to get a couple of CDs for £3 each while they were still going for £8+ online. But otherwise I barely make a purchase there, I just browse. Since the increase of popularity in areas like games, DVDs, Blu-Rays (even selling gadgets), I feel that HMV have sort of lost their image as being the place to go to buy music by branching out to all those other areas. It's sad to see some of their stores closing (is there any list to show which ones?) but they've had it coming by charging incredibly high prices for the majority of their items and not competing well enough against supermarkets and online. A lot of my purchases are TV boxsets, and since HMV charge such high prices compared to online, I have no choice but to buy online. One other thing about buying instore is that their CD cases are generally really scratched & DVD boxes can be slightly damaged since other people may have been handling it or even missing some packaging, whereas online they'll come in really good condition and sealed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 I was in HMV today. The store manager was grasping the till yelling he'd go down with the ship. It was most admirable. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 I don't get the HMV hate :/I always love going to HMV when I'm in town. I've bought most of my CD's, which are...pretty old Jazz records and HMV always have the best collection and even update the jazz section from time to time. It's so handy as they aren't exactly popular in other shops I mostly go there to drift aimlessly though, I could easily spend over an hour in there. So please don't close!! D: You go to the Limerick one right? Ya it's ok but their gaming prices are all over the shop( no pun) occasional good movie deals at the front though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 HMV is crap. You can't find anything you want because it is never where it says it will be, it is way over-priced (£12 for a copy of Airplane!, when i got it online for £2.20) for what you get for your money and the stores (well, the ones i've been to) are run by emos and goths. Hopefully this will kick them up the rear end and make them more competive. If I wasn't about to go to bed I'd argue with you here. Basically, you're wrong. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 I don't buy games online because I don't have a credit card, and most places online don't take Maestro Laser Cards. As for HMV, compared to Gamestop and Game, they always have the newest releases as at least €5 less than the other places, so I've been buying from them basically all the time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 Of course, I feel sorry for the employees, it's a tragedy that so many are going to lose their jobs. ... HOWEVER: I remember less than five years ago when, even with the booming online marketplace, "vanilla" and less popular DVDs were still going for 19.99 and albums were an amazing 16.99. Social Darwinism in economics? Et tu Caesar, and fall Brute. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 I don't buy games online because I don't have a credit card, and most places online don't take Maestro Laser Cards. Can't you switch to a bank that will give you a decent debit card? Never quite understood the mentality of sticking with a shit bank that gives you a shit card. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 HMV, the place to go to work out what to buy at Play.com Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted January 6, 2011 (edited) Can't you switch to a bank that will give you a decent debit card? Never quite understood the mentality of sticking with a shit bank that gives you a shit card. Visa Debit Cards are brilliant. As I got one when I opened my first account, I still find it odd that some banks give their customers debit cards that aren't accepted everywhere online. HMV, the place to go to work out what to buy at Play.com Amazon seem to have better prices and quicker postage than Play.com these days. As for games (especially pre-orders) I have no idea why everyone doesn't already use ShopTo (except for the rare game that they're not the cheapest for). Edited January 6, 2011 by Cube Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
