Winchester HMV at risk of closure

Winchester HMV is at risk of closure, despite the franchise being saved from collapse for the second time in six years.

Across the UK, 27 stores will close their doors after being deemed unprofitable, resulting in 455 redundancies.

The location of the stores up for closure have yet to be announced, leaving stores all over Hampshire, including, Winchester, Basingstoke and Portsmouth branches at risk.

A representative from the Winchester store said: “We just don’t know, we aren’t part of the immediate closures, but the store could be closed at any point down the line.”

Sunrise Records, which is owed by Canadian mogul Doug Putman, bought the UK music and film retailer after beating competitors, such as Mike Ashley, the sports direct boss, over the weekend.

The franchise collapsed into administration after Christmas, as they continued to struggle to compete with increasingly popular streaming services, such as Spotify and Netflix.

In a statement announcing the deal Putman said: “We are delighted to acquire the most iconic music and entertainment business in the UK and add nearly 1,500 employees to our growing team. 

“By catering to music and entertainment lovers, we are incredibly excited about the opportunity to engage customers with a diverse range of physical format content, and replicate our success in Canada” 

The stores will continue to operate under the HMV brand, with four stores continuing to trade as Fopp.