HMV to close 66 stores

HMV has announced it will close 66 stores (PA)

Retailer HMV has announced it will close 66 shops nationwide.

HMV administrator Deloitte said the 66 shops were all loss-making. They include five outlets in Edinburgh and three in Glasgow.

HMV currently has 220 stores in the UK and employs 4,000 staff.

Deloitte said no fixed date had been set for the closure of the 66 identified stores, which would continue to trade in the meantime.

“This step has been taken in order to enhance the prospects of securing the business' future as a going concern,” Nick Edwards, joint administrator at Deloitte, said.

“We continue to receive strong support from staff and are extremely grateful to them for their commitment during an understandably difficult period. All other key stakeholders remain very supportive and I continue to be hopeful of securing a future for the restructured business.”

The closure plans come after the group axed nearly 190 jobs across its offices and distribution centres last month.

HMV went into administration in January after it faced difficult competition from online retailers, digital downloads and supermarkets.

Stores due for closure

England: Ashton-under-Lyne, Barnsley, Bayswater, Bexleyheath, Birkenhead, Birmingham Fort, Blackburn, Boston, Bournemouth Castlepoint, Bracknell, Burton-upon-Trent, Camberley, Chesterfield, Croydon Centrale, Durham, Fulham, Huddersfield, Leamington Spa, Leeds White Rose, Loughborough, Luton, Manchester 90, Moorgate, Orpington, Rochdale, Scunthorpe, South Shields, Speke Park, St Albans, St Helens, Stockton-on-Tees, Tamworth, Teesside, Telford, Trocadero, Wakefield, Walsall, Walton-on-Thames, Wandsworth, Warrington, Watford, Wellingborough, Wigan, Wood Green, Workington

Scotland: Dumfries, Edinburgh Fort, Edinburgh Gyle Centre, Edinburgh Ocean, Edinburgh Princes Street, Edinburgh St James, Falkirk, Glasgow - Fort, Glasgow - Silverburn, Glasgow Braehead, Kirkcaldy

Northern Ireland: Ballymena, Belfast Boucher Road, Belfast Forestside, Coleraine, Craigavon, Derry, Lisburn, Newry, Newtownabbey

Wales: Wrexham