HMV to close ‘unsustainable’ Oxford Street store three years after reopening

By ANGHARAD CARRICK, BUSINESS NEWS EDITOR

HMV plans to close its flagship Oxford Street store just three years after reopening the site, blaming landlords for doubling its rent.

The entertainment and music chain said it plans to leave 363 Oxford Street in March next year but vowed to keep a ‘significant presence’ in London as it searches for a new store in the West End.

It said landlords had proposed doubling the rent and is facing a ‘substantial’ bill for renovation works, which made it ‘commercially unsustainable’.

HMV first opened the site in 1921 before closing it in 2019 after the chain fell into administration.

It was rescued from insolvency by Canadian Doug Putman, who also owns the Toys R Us chain, reopening the historic site in November 2023.

Managing director Phil Halliday said: ‘This is a special store, it’s where we began 100 years ago and bringing it back to life in 2023 was a big moment in our recent history.

‘It’s frustrating that it has been made commercially unviable. However, we are looking ahead, and our focus is now on what we do to make exciting steps for HMV in 2027.’

Unsustainable: HMV will close its flagship Oxford Street next spring

HMV said it would look to transfer employees to its two other London stores and head office as it looks for a new shop.

It came as the chain, which has 123 stores across the UK, reported a 15 per cent uptick in sales in the first nine months of the year.

Revenues for shops and online trading are set to reach £240million, up from £212million in 2025.

Once seen as a casualty of online music streaming, HMV has enjoyed a renaissance, thanks to a revival in demand for physical CDs and vinyl in recent years.

Halliday said: ‘We hope to redeploy affected team members through other London stores and head office roles and are exploring ways to minimise the impact on jobs while we seek a new flagship site.’

‘We’re actively looking for a new location in the West End and are determined to give London a store that music fans can be proud of,’ he added.

The HMV boss has been vocal in his criticism of the Government’s tax raids. Halliday told the Daily Mail last year that high street operators had paid more than online rivals such as Amazon and Apple.

‘That burden should be more evenly spread. In the High Street we have had our share of the tax rises, and we would hope that they look somewhere else.’

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