HMV Ireland was an
entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousa ...
retailing company operated in Ireland by
Hilco Capital Ireland. The company was first established by HMV Group Plc as part of their international expansion into Ireland and Canada in 1986.
The first store in Ireland established was at HMV on
Grafton Street
Grafton Street () is one of the two principal shopping streets in Dublin city centre (the other being Henry Street). It runs from St Stephen's Green in the south (at the highest point of the street) to College Green in the north (the lowes ...
in Dublin (closed since February 2013, reopened in new location in 2014, a different location in 2015 and closed again in 2016).
History
1986–2000s
HMV established its first store in Ireland in 1986 following the retailer's expansion to Canada. The first store to open was on Grafton Street which became very popular for numerous big name Irish acts performing live in the store. The retailer expanded in Dublin with a second store on Henry Street and that followed with expansion into
Cork in the late 1980s before adding a store in
Limerick City
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
in the 1990s. The retailer expanded with numerous stores in the Greater Dublin region and nationwide again into
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city on ...
and
Newbridge in the early to mid 2000s.
On 5 February 2011 HMV Ireland announced that its profits had fallen by almost 90% to €465,000, compared to €4.1 million the previous year.
Receivership
Following increased pressure from high rental rates in Ireland, increased legal and illegal downloading and competition from online retailers in January 2013 HMV's parent company HMV Group plc went into administration in the United Kingdom, potentially affecting its operations within Ireland, Hong Kong and Singapore. In January 2013, its 16 stores in the Republic went into receivership and as a result its Irish subsidiary ceased trading with the loss of 300 jobs. On 15 January 2013 HMV Ireland refused to accept HMV vouchers within its stores following HMV UK's administration, although HMV Ireland was a separate entity to the UK operation. The refusal of vouchers proved controversial for staff and customers, leading to speculation that HMV Ireland would also enter administration.
On 16 January 2013, HMV Ireland declared
receivership
In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
, under Irish law; companies in receivership must close its stores with immediate effect and all Irish stores were closed until further notice.
Deloitte Ireland was appointed receiver and are reportedly seeking a buyer for HMV's Irish stores. The National Consumer Agency in Ireland questioned the legal basis on which HMV in Ireland refused to honour gift vouchers and this criticism was later supported by accountancy agencies claiming that HMV Ireland Ltd. was not part of the HMV UK administration and refusal of vouchers was unlawful prior to receivership. Since HMV Ireland's announcement of receivership staff located at HMV stores in
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
and
Cork refused to leave the premises based on the uncertainty whether they will get paid for December and early January. Deloitte confirmed on 19 January that all staff would be paid what they were owed, and that it was attempting to sell the Irish stores. It was confirmed on 12 February 2013 that all stores within Ireland are officially closed with immediate effect and HMV has left the Irish market place. It resulted in the loss of 300 jobs.
May to September 2013: Hilco Capital Ireland reinvestment
One of Dublin's HMV stores is set to be re-opened in a deal being negotiated. Stores in other parts of Ireland are also set to reopen following successful negotiations with landlords.
On 9 June 2013 the ''
Sunday Independent'' revealed
Hilco Capital
Hilco Capital is a British international company that specialises in restructuring and refinancing other companies.
Notable projects
Hilco has been involved with these companies, and in some cases owning and operating them for a period of tim ...
Ireland confirmed it has purchased HMV Ireland. Its new owners will reopen five stores in Ireland within the next six weeks. The new Irish flagship store will be based on Dublin's
Henry Street. This store closed in February 2013 due to HMV Ireland Ltd. going into receivership. The Henry Street store will be the first to open and additional stores will reopen within the next six weeks these include HMV in Dublin's
Liffey Valley Shopping Centre
Liffey Valley Shopping Centre is a shopping centre located in Dublin 22, Ireland which Comprises 80 stores and 20 Restaurants. The centre opened on and is located near the junction of the M50 motorway and N4 road closely surrounded by Lucan ...
,
Dundrum Town Centre
Dundrum Town Centre is a shopping centre located in Dundrum, Dublin, Ireland. It is Ireland's largest shopping centre with over 169 tenants, almost of floor space, and over 3,400 car parking spaces. It is located just south of the village ce ...
and the
Crescent Shopping Centre in
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
. A fifth store is expected to open in Cork and possibly an additional store in Galway. HMV Ireland is to re-invest up to €4 million in its Irish stores and employ 100 people. It is also speculated that they hope to reopen on Dublin's
Grafton Street
Grafton Street () is one of the two principal shopping streets in Dublin city centre (the other being Henry Street). It runs from St Stephen's Green in the south (at the highest point of the street) to College Green in the north (the lowes ...
in the future in a new location.
On 27 August 2013 Hilco Ireland announced that HMV Ireland stores would open in early September and these stores will redeem unused HMV vouchers purchased through the companies previous owners. HMV on Henry Street is the first to open on 6 September 2013 and will be opened by Irish band
The Strypes
The Strypes were a four-piece rock band from Cavan, Ireland, formed in 2010 consisting of Ross Farrelly (lead vocals/harmonica), Josh McClorey (lead guitar/vocals), Peter O'Hanlon (bass guitar/harmonica) and Evan Walsh (drums). The band played ...
. All other stores will open the following week, with the Dundrum store to open at a later date. On 29 August 2013 HMV Ireland also confirmed that 26 HMV concession stores will open in local
Xtra-vision stores in Ireland. These dual branded stores (Xtra-vision / HMV) will open in
Athlone,
Ballina,
Blackpool and
Douglas
Douglas may refer to:
People
* Douglas (given name)
* Douglas (surname)
Animals
* Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking
*Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civi ...
in
Cork,
Carlow,
Drogheda,
Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
,
Portlaoise,
Ennis,
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city on ...
and
Thurles
Thurles (; ''Durlas Éile'') is a town in County Tipperary, Ireland. It is located in the civil parish of the same name in the barony of Eliogarty and in the ecclesiastical parish of Thurles. The cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Arc ...
, thus increasing HMV's presence on the Irish high street. These dual branded stores will begin rebranding from late September. HMV Ireland confirmed that it would launch services already available to customers in Canada to be made available in Ireland including HMV's localised website hmv.ie and its digital service 'The Vault'.
The Dublin Henry Street store reopened on 5 September 2013 and the Liffey Valley shopping centre, Dundrum Town Centre and Limerick Crescent shopping centre stores re-opened on 12 September 2013.
HMV opened a new branch on Grafton Street on 19 April 2014 and in Edward Square, Galway in Summer 2014.
On Saturday 13 June 2015 HMV's Grafton Street Store will relocate to 72 Grafton Street. The new store is located in the former Karen Millen Store which was previously the Grafton Cinema until the 1970s.
In early 2016, HMV Ireland confirmed the closure of its Galway City store and its store on Dublin's Grafton Street, both stores will close by end of January. This follows the closure of many Xtravision and HMV Xtravision branded stores at the end of December 2015/early January. In late January 2016 the remainder of Xtravision was liquidated.
Closure in 2016
In July 2016, Hilco announced it would be closing its remaining five stores, in order to refocus HMV in Ireland as a new digital service (HMV Digital) where customers can stream, rent or purchase music and films online. The new HMV digital service will launch in Ireland before rolling out into the UK and Canada.
However, HMV failed to successfully launch its new digital service in Ireland. All stores closed between 29 and 30 August.
Product range
HMV stores stocked a range of products including
audio
Audio most commonly refers to sound, as it is transmitted in signal form. It may also refer to:
Sound
* Audio signal, an electrical representation of sound
*Audio frequency, a frequency in the audio spectrum
* Digital audio, representation of sou ...
, books,
Blu-ray Discs,
CDs
The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in Octo ...
, computer software and hardware,
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
s,
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
s, posters, as well as an increasing range of clothing and fashion items
See also
*
HMV
Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom.
The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
HMV Ireland
Retail companies established in 1986
Retail companies disestablished in 2016
1986 establishments in Ireland
Retail companies of Ireland