Iconic High Street favourite to return to famous HQ just four years after administration
REVITALISED music giant HMV is to return to its famous old London HQ — four years after being rescued from administration.
The chain, now back in profit, will reoccupy 363 Oxford Street as demand for vinyl, CDs and cassettes grows among younger listeners.
Entrepreneur Doug Putman took over the business, which is now as popular for its band T-shirts, Pokemon merchandise and Squishmallow toys as it is for its music.
He plans to relaunch later this year with live performances from stars such as Ed Sheeran.
HMV stands for His Master’s Voice, the title of a painting of dog Nipper listening to a gramophone, which is the company’s logo.
The Oxford Street shop, its first in Britain, has carved a place in music history since opening in 1921.
Manager Brian Epstein made a demo tape of The Beatles in its recording studio, landing the Fab Four their first record deal.
In 1995, Blur played a rooftop gig to launch their Great Escape album as helicopters circled.
A year on, 6,000 people watched the Spice Girls turn Christmas Lights on at the landmark shop.
When HMV went bust, the business failed to agree a deal with landlords. Most recently, its old HQ was used by a US candy store.
Mr Putman, who owns record stores in Canada through Sunrise Records, said: “When it closed, it was so sad and for years I’d walk past and the sign was still there.
“There is no doubt Oxford Street has lost some of its shine. But we hope that enough people care and that a solution will be found.”
Marks & Spencer boss Stuart Machin this week branded the shopping hotspot a “national embarrassment” owing to the proliferation of tacky sweet shops.
Geoff Barraclough, of Westminster City Council, said: “It’s fantastic to see this iconic brand back on Oxford Street, where it stood as a driver of music and pop culture in the capital for so long.”
