Music retailer HMV is shutting its huge store in Plymouth’s Drake Circus Shopping Centre – to open in a smaller vacant unit just yards away.
Signs went up on Boxing Day announcing that everything must go because of the closure, scheduled for January 19, 2020.
But the chain is expected to reopen at the end of the month in the vacant unit last used by electrical retailer Maplin, a stone’s throw away in Cornwall Street.
The vast Drake’s Circus mall is owned by British Land, but the unit HMV is moving to is not.
Meanwhile, HMV is also pulling out of another shopping centre, the famous Bullring in Birmingham’
HMV opened a new store called HMV Vault on the fringe of the city centre in October 2019. It is inside the former Toys R Us shop turned IKEA collections store, below NCP's High Street Car Park, Dale End.
Staff were told The Vault’s opening would signal the closure of the Bullring store.
Insiders said the Bullring store had been taking more money than The Vault, but its overheads are considerably higher.
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The firm has not revealed its reasons for re-locating in Plymouth, but the departure of HMV from the enormous mall unit will give British Land a headache as it has yet to fill units vacated by Soletrader, Mothercare and Lush, when the latter relocated to a larger unit.
Drake Circus bosses are, however, in talks with a new company and hoping to fill the gound-floor unit used by HMV.
The unit has been occupied since the mall opened in October 2006, by HMV and its predecessors Zavvi and Virgin.
British Land revealed it was hoping to unveil fresh occupants in the New Year with centre director Greg Lumley saying: “We’re in ongoing discussions at the moment with a potential new occupier to move into the HMV store which is part of our ongoing investment and development at Drake Circus.
“We look forward to announcing the new opening once details have been finalised in the new year.”
British Land has declined to identify its potential new occupant nor reveal the type of business.
The ground floor HMV store, together with another branch in Exeter’s Princesshay, closed for just 18 days in February 2019 when its parent firm went belly-up.
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HMV had gone into administration in December 2018 after a whopping 30% fall in demand for DVDs at Christmas. Much of this was blamed on viewing habits which have seen a switch to streaming services.
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But the Plymouth and Exeter outlets were among several that reopened after the music retailer was rescued by Sunrise Records of Canada.
Doug Putman, the 34-year-old boss of Sunrise Records, saved HMV from administration in January 2019, seeing off a bid from Sports Direct’s Mike Ashley.
But he immediately closed 27 of the 127 branches, including the flagship Oxford Street store in London, and those in Plymouth and Exeter.
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Experts said that he had clearly targeted the stores with the highest rents and rates bills for closures.
But the new owner reached an agreement with British Land on rental for the vast unit, which had been closed for 18 days, but none of the stock removed
Maplin closed in Plymouth in 2018 and its shop has lain empty since. Prior to its own administration, stationery supplier Office Outlet had been looking at the unit in Cornwall Street, but the firm collapsed before any move could take place.