Music and merchandise retailer makes its much-anticipated Irish return after closing in 2016
Phil Halliday, managing director of HMV Europe, pictured outside the new HMV Shop on Henry Street, Dublin, which opens on Friday. Photograph: Damien EagersDays out from its opening and already the presence of the famous HMV logo on Henry Street for the first time in almost a decade seems to be piquing interest.
Beset by the rise of streaming and the impact, more generally, of the post-2008 recession, HMV initially closed its doors in 2013. After a brief revival lasting just three years, Ireland said goodbye to the chain in 2016 with the closure of five shops, including Henry Street. Emboldened by the success of his record store venture in Canada, retail billionaire Doug Putman bought the UK business in 2019 for less than €1 million having acquired the Canadian division two years earlier.
“When Doug, who is the owner, bought a chain of record shops in Canada,” says Phil Halliday, managing director of the reincarnated HMV group, “I think probably people were at times like ‘what the hell are you doing?’. But now all of his business are on a better footing. There is a pattern to what he’s done and customers want it and if you can deliver it in the right place, in the right way, there is demand for it.
Four years later, HMV’s 120 UK shops – including one in Belfast – are profitable, against the backdrop of booming vinyl record sales. “The business is doing really well,” says Halliday. “Our financial year end in the UK is May and revenue will be up significantly on the year previous. We’re in a good place.”
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