Jobs saved as Hilco buys HMV stores
Around 2,500 jobs are saved at retailer HMV after restructuring firm Hilco buys 141 stores, including 25 that were due to close.
Hilco, which already owns HMV Canada, has bought the high street chain from administrator Deloitte, reportedly paying £50m for the CD and DVD retailer.
The 92-year-old company has negotiated revised terms with landlords and key suppliers and is ditching plans to sell tablet computers.
Hilco emerged as the frontrunner to buy HMV after it bought the group’s debt in January, weeks after it went into administration following years of declining sales lost to online firms and supermarkets.
Prior to administration, HMV had 222 stores across the UK and employed over 4,000 staff. Since then, 81 stores have shut.
Nipper the dog
HMV, known for its Nipper the dog logo, was one the high street’s biggest casualties and followed the failures of camera chain Jessops and electricals retailer Comet.
Hilco chief executive Paul McGowan said the group spent weeks discussing fresh terms with landlords and suppliers, which all supported its plans to keep the chain on the high street. The long-awaited deal includes nine Fopp stores.
Hilco plans to replicate some of the success it has had with HMV in Canada, which it bought almost two years ago and is now “trading strongly”.
Mr McGowan, who will chair HMV, said: “The structural differences in the markets and the higher level of competition in the UK will prove additional challenges for the UK business, but we believe it has a successful future ahead of it.”
Hilco will reverse plans to sell tablets and other devices in stores and “reclaim the space for an enhanced music and visual range”.