Sunday 20 January 2013

Two UK Retail Icons Bite The Dust


In a sad week for traditional retailing two retail icons, HMV and Blockbuster, have called in the administrators in the UK.
Both names are familiar to Australian consumers although HMV closed their last store in Australia in 2010. The inevitable post mortems have brought up 3 key factors in their demise.
1.    Both companies failed to adjust adequately to the online trends that started probably 15 years ago.
2.    The financial backers of both companies continued to provide financial support despite declining business conditions.
3.    Consumers stopped buying. The public disappointment has been loud and clear but the public went to more attractive options when making their buying decisions.
Failing to meet the needs of a changing retail environment has ramifications for all areas of retailing.