No more HMV
So as I'm sure you are now aware, HMV has gone into administration, meaning that the whole company is in a sort of limbo stage until a buyer is found. However the fact that HMV will most likely close a significant number of it's stores isn't what really annoys me. What annoys me is how inevitable this outcome was.
There is no doubt in anybodies mind that we are in an 'online era'. Clearly then, online shopping giants such as Amazon were also going to be fierce competition.
To start with, even when you include postage, CD's are often cheaper on Amazon, and despite the fact that your item will take longer to receive than just buying it in a shop, price will still come first when deciding where to buy something. That's the real problem, so many people want to save every last penny they can, but often forget about the long term effects of that decision.
If 2 years ago I walked up to you and said 'when you buy something, spend that extra 50p and get it from a proper shop, or soon that shop will shut down' what would you do? After all, 50p extra isn't exactly going to break your bank account, but it could help save a business.
I feel myself slipping into the 'every little helps' philosophy here which wasn't the intention, but at the end of the day, would HMV be in this position if we thought about the effects of buying online, just to save a rather small amount of money?
Well to some extent the consumers are too blame but what really annoys me here is that HMV didn't seem to have seen it coming, a few years ago, HMV opened a series of 'Curzon' stores, joining with the popular cinema chain to create a complete HMV experience, but for some reason, they stopped at just a few stores.
Secondly, HMV really didn't sell the download side to music purchases. Sure, they made it available but it was never something they would shout about. So, is it a shock that HMV have had to close down? Not at all.
The final nail in the coffin for consumers came yesterday, with gift cards being rejected and deemed worthless. This disregard for customers may appear to get HMV more money in the short term, but on the off chance a buyer is found a stores open again, they may have lost a lot of customers in the future.
So all in all HMV was just a disaster waiting to happen, and I guess they just got bored of waiting.
There is no doubt in anybodies mind that we are in an 'online era'. Clearly then, online shopping giants such as Amazon were also going to be fierce competition.
To start with, even when you include postage, CD's are often cheaper on Amazon, and despite the fact that your item will take longer to receive than just buying it in a shop, price will still come first when deciding where to buy something. That's the real problem, so many people want to save every last penny they can, but often forget about the long term effects of that decision.
If 2 years ago I walked up to you and said 'when you buy something, spend that extra 50p and get it from a proper shop, or soon that shop will shut down' what would you do? After all, 50p extra isn't exactly going to break your bank account, but it could help save a business.
I feel myself slipping into the 'every little helps' philosophy here which wasn't the intention, but at the end of the day, would HMV be in this position if we thought about the effects of buying online, just to save a rather small amount of money?
Well to some extent the consumers are too blame but what really annoys me here is that HMV didn't seem to have seen it coming, a few years ago, HMV opened a series of 'Curzon' stores, joining with the popular cinema chain to create a complete HMV experience, but for some reason, they stopped at just a few stores.
Secondly, HMV really didn't sell the download side to music purchases. Sure, they made it available but it was never something they would shout about. So, is it a shock that HMV have had to close down? Not at all.
The final nail in the coffin for consumers came yesterday, with gift cards being rejected and deemed worthless. This disregard for customers may appear to get HMV more money in the short term, but on the off chance a buyer is found a stores open again, they may have lost a lot of customers in the future.
So all in all HMV was just a disaster waiting to happen, and I guess they just got bored of waiting.