Fopp Shop Flop???

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 23 Jun 2007, 16:09

It'll be a sad day if Fopp go under. Actually, it would be awful.
Imagine having to rely on shopping at HMV or Virgin for a reasonable range of new CDs.

Fopp

bearcub · Post by **bearcub** » 23 Jun 2007, 18:38

I'd be gutted, they're great shops and 1,000 times better than HMV and Virgin.

Sounds like they could be victims of music downloads, Virgin and HMV have the ability/backing to "diversify", but Fopp rely on music sales much more.

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 23 Jun 2007, 19:04

There seems to be a line of thought that they've overstretched themselves in buying up the MVC (Music Zone) stores earlier in the year.

Today the branch in Rose Street was only taking cash for transactions saying their card machines were on the blink. They'll have lost a small fortune on that too.

Sadly, it's not looking too good, I'd say. I hope I'm wrong.

Sandra · Post by **Sandra** » 24 Jun 2007, 12:48

oh no

I love Fopp, can browse for ages, get loads of bargains and great books as well as music. Hope its not true.

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 24 Jun 2007, 13:35

According to the music forums I visit, stores all over England and Scotland were only dealing in cash yesterday.
You can no longer place orders on-line with them though their web-site promises a return to normal service next week.

Pah!

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 25 Jun 2007, 12:29

Losing Fopp would be a tragedy . Let's hope they make it.

Nelson Hatstand · Post by **Nelson Hatstand** » 25 Jun 2007, 20:44

It would be flippin' rubbish. Where else in Edinburgh am I going to get vinyl like this?

Or this?

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 26 Jun 2007, 07:10

Nelson Hatstand wrote:It would be flippin' rubbish. Where else in Edinburgh am I going to get vinyl like this?

Exactly! I think.

I just spent ages googling "blossom cogs" as I'd never heard of them. I now realise I should have been googling the blossom toes.

I've never heard of them either.

Izzie · Post by **Izzie** » 29 Jun 2007, 13:10

Found this on the BBC News site

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6252300.stm

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 29 Jun 2007, 13:13

Oh, bugger!!

That's a blow.

They were still working in cash only up until yesterday.

rathbone · Post by **rathbone** » 29 Jun 2007, 19:38

Noticed our local one was shut today, with a big sign in the window saying: Closed Till Further Notice........ which at least has an element of hope about it.

Pal of Porty · Post by **Pal of Porty** » 30 Jun 2007, 05:42

Hope gone I'm afraid. Now officially in administration.

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 30 Jun 2007, 08:06

Pal of Porty wrote:Hope gone I'm afraid. Now officially in administration.

Yeah, it would seem it's all over but perhaps some of the business can survive?
There are some interesting comments to this article from the Scotsman from earlier today.

fopp

Sandra · Post by **Sandra** » 30 Jun 2007, 12:05

how sad

Marguerite-the-Poet · Post by **Marguerite-the-Poet** » 01 Jul 2007, 03:30

Izzie wrote:Found this on the BBC News site

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6252300.stm

Very sad news! I wonder if the 'bankers and HBOS' might consider extending Fopp a temporary "Second Life" in The Marketplace. I've heard phenomenal things happen there.

http://secondlife.com/whatis/

SoupDragon · Post by **SoupDragon** » 01 Jul 2007, 22:57

Alas poor Fopp
I bought my dad a LP of Mongolian mouth music from there, he was speechless with delight to receive it
At least I think it was delight

Black Mamba · Post by **Black Mamba** » 02 Jul 2007, 18:36

Bah humbug.
I only recently discovered Fopp!! They have a great wee shop in Glen Rothes. I tend to buy more dvd's than c.d's though. It'll be a sad day when they go.

Black Mamba · Post by **Black Mamba** » 03 Jul 2007, 14:26

Just been on their web site and sadly this is all you get now.
It is with great regret that we announce the closure of Fopp.

Our store chain is profitable, well regarded and loved by our loyal customers and staff. However we have failed to gain the necessary support from major stakeholders, suppliers and their credit insurers to generate sufficient working capital to run our expanding business.

We would like to thank staff and customers for their support over the past 25 years.

Any outstanding website orders have now been cancelled and will not be fulfilled or charged.

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 03 Jul 2007, 14:30

Fopp Website wrote: Our store chain is profitable, well regarded and loved by our loyal customers and staff. However we have failed to gain the necessary support from major stakeholders, suppliers and their credit insurers to generate sufficient working capital to run our expanding business.
.

So how should one interpret that?

Black Mamba · Post by **Black Mamba** » 03 Jul 2007, 14:51

Good question Porty

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 03 Jul 2007, 15:38

We were succesful but we screwed it up?

Black Mamba · Post by **Black Mamba** » 04 Jul 2007, 16:47

Had a look at Fopp in Glenrothes today.The shop is closed and all that lovely stock is just sitting there!!!!!!!!!

I hope they at least have some kind of sale to clear the current stock.

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 04 Jul 2007, 21:19

Same story in Rose Street.

Izzie · Post by **Izzie** » 31 Jul 2007, 18:57

Fopp bought over by HMV

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6923511.stm

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 31 Jul 2007, 19:35

Yeah, heard the news on the radio earlier. Wonder if both Edinburgh stores will operate?
Will Fopp still be the same under the new ownership? We'll see.
I'm really surprised that only six stores were considered as profitable enough to be bought over.

A branch of Fopp only opened in St. Andrews at the end of last summer. I can't believe that in a town with as a big student population as that such a venture wouldn't be a real money spinner. The place was crying out for just such a shop.

bearcub · Post by **bearcub** » 31 Jul 2007, 19:51

Oh great, HMV-owned FOPP's....

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 31 Jul 2007, 19:57

bearcub wrote:Oh great, HMV-owned FOPP's....

I know. Not great, but we might get a nice surprise. Things might go on as before and we'll not notice any change at all.
But I doubt it.

Poppy · Post by **Poppy** » 31 Jul 2007, 20:16

Re St Andrew's & students: my niece used to bang on about how great it was that she could buy a CD, record it then take it back "no questions asked". I wondered then how long a business could carry on that policy - all very nice and groovy

, but... And this policy was cited in one article I read as one of Fopp's problems. Can't see HMV doing it? May be just a case of packaging to entice young uns into somewhere more "edgy" than HMV?

Nelson Hatstand · Post by **Nelson Hatstand** » 31 Jul 2007, 20:32

Poppy wrote:Re St Andrew's & students: my niece used to bang on about how great it was that she could buy a CD, record it then take it back "no questions asked". I wondered then how long a business could carry on that policy - all very nice and groovy , but... And this policy was cited in one article I read as one of Fopp's problems. Can't see HMV doing it? May be just a case of packaging to entice young uns into somewhere more "edgy" than HMV?

Thing is, there was nothing 'edgy' about Fopp anyway by the time it shut down, and it probably was a contributing factor to putting a lot of proper edgy independent music shops out of business.

HMV has been trying to become more and more like Fopp in the last year - now it's bought the brand, creamed off the most profitable shops, and it makes perfect sense to run them as they have been running. They're not exactly going to make zillions of pounds from 6 shops are they, so the question is why bother? And one rumour is that they've done it to kill off any chance of Fopp coming back to rival them in full-strength stylee. That makes perfect sense too...

Sandra · Post by **Sandra** » 31 Jul 2007, 22:34

ecm wrote:
bearcub wrote:Oh great, HMV-owned FOPP's....
I know. Not great, but we might get a nice surprise. Things might go on as before and we'll not notice any change at all.
But I doubt it.

crap, just buy from amazon/ebay instead. Unless they keep it cheap. Doubt it.

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 01 Aug 2007, 07:53

Sandra wrote:
ecm wrote:
bearcub wrote:Oh great, HMV-owned FOPP's....
I know. Not great, but we might get a nice surprise. Things might go on as before and we'll not notice any change at all.
But I doubt it.
crap, just buy from amazon/ebay instead. Unless they keep it cheap. Doubt it.

That's fine if you know what you want. A lot of the time I'm never sure what I want until I see it.
You can't flip through album covers and jewel cases on amazon. I don't need amazon to tell me that if I buy X, I might also like Y.
That's what's fun about it all especially in the indie/second hand shops. You can make some really unexpected finds.
Moving to York may be the answer for me. For the size of the place they have a load of excellent wee shops. I went into one whilst on holiday just for a browse and spent nearly £70 and came out with heaps of stuff.

Nelson Hatstand · Post by **Nelson Hatstand** » 01 Aug 2007, 11:24

surprise surprise, it's the rose street branch which is re-opening, not the much more interesting cockburn street branch.

ecm wrote:Moving to York may be the answer for me. For the size of the place they have a load of excellent wee shops. I went into one whilst on holiday just for a browse and spent nearly £70 and came out with heaps of stuff.

I went back to york last year, and all the little record shops in which i spent my student grant had closed down. which one did you spend your cash in?

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 01 Aug 2007, 19:56

Nelson Hatstand wrote: I went back to york last year, and all the little record shops in which i spent my student grant had closed down. which one did you spend your cash in?

It was in a street with a funny name? I'll get back to you once I check my wee town centre map. I think it might be in the same street as a famous sit in fish and chip place which also had a funny name???

The shop may have been called the Ark, I think? The owner was a nice man with a nice dog called Meg.

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 01 Aug 2007, 20:03

The street is called Gillygate.

ecm · Post by **ecm** » 01 Aug 2007, 20:15

The street number of the Ark is 52 apparently.