Back in the day, no trip to central London was complete without a trip to the big HMV on Oxford Street, taking sweet advantage of the two-for-£10 deal on CDs.
Even after the boom of streaming, the HMV flagship store managed to stand strong but, alas, it closed its doors in 2019 to the dismay of many a music buff.
There are no prizes for guessing what replaced the store after it lay empty for an extended period. But now the old American candy store is no more and His Master’s Voice has flung the doors open again – just in time for Christmas!
The HMV Expansion
HMV’s flagship on Oxford Street was opened in 1921 by composer Sir Edward Elgar, and their first store was inches away from celebrating its 100th anniversary before its closure. It came as part of widespread HMV closures in 2019, which saw 27 stores shut up shop.
Now, after the chain celebrated a century of pushing physical copies of music and film, it’s back at 363 Oxford Street where it belongs. It’s time to welcome back your old chum and get to browsing through that vinyl selection.
Now that the flagship store is back, visitors can expect to find their usual array of CDs, vinyl, DVDs, and music technology (headphones, speakers, and the like) on top of pop-culture merchandise. It is now the largest entertainment outlet in the capital city. There’s also a purpose-built performance space where guests can soon expect to see plenty of live performances and signings from renowned artists and local bands alike.
If now isn’t the time to take up that record-collecting hobby then when is? At the very least, we should all be rolling back the years to carry home Riot! by Paramore in a pink and white carrier back like it’s 2007 again. Long live His Master’s Voice.