HMV overtakes Amazon as number one physical music retailer
British entertainment shop HMV has reclaimed its position as the number one music retailer driven by a surge in physical music sales, Kantar Worldpanel said on Monday.
HMV has moved ahead of Amazon in physical music sales for the first time since Semptember 2013, driven by the interest for CDs and vinyls from British artists such as Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran.
The retailer entered into administration in 2013 and was bought by Hilco, who purchased the group's debt from its lenders, Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland.
Sales rose 12% year-on-year to £9.8m during the last quarter ended 15 March.
Fiona Keenan, strategic insight director at Kantar, said: "HMV has been successful in attracting shoppers in store that want to browse its extensive range of products before deciding what to buy, which historically was a real area of strength for the high street specialist.
Keenan added that before collapsing into administration, HMV’s share of browsing purchases was regularly over 50%, "so this recent resurgence is a positive sign for the retailer’s future as it faces increased competition from the online market”.