Entertainment retailer Zavvi is to ramp up its expansion programme after opening its first two stores since the management buy-out from Virgin Megastores last year.
The stores, which are the first to open under the Zavvi name, launched in the past fortnight in Belfast and Camberley, Surrey and a further two – in Bristol and Liverpool – are due to open later this year.
However, chief executive Simon Douglas wants to accelerate the opening programme and has instructed property agent Colliers CRE to acquire between five and 10 stores a year for the next three years.
Zavvi is targeting locations including Newcastle, Bath, Glasgow, Blackpool, Cardiff, Wakefield, Warrington, Doncaster and Cambridge. Some of the stores, such as Belfast and Liverpool, are in new shopping centres, but Zavvi plans to retain its existing shops in those cities.
Douglas said: “We have ambitious growth plans that involve opening stores in many locations. We’ve secured four sites this year already and we are on our way to hitting our target.”
The plans are the latest sign that entertainment retailers are confident they have a future on the high street, after their strong performances at Christmas driven by computer games.
Zavvi’s like-for-like sales climbed 10.2 per cent in the four weeks to January 5, with games rocketing nearly 63 per cent. Rival HMV also performed strongly, posting a like-for-like jump of 14.1 per cent in the UK and Ireland for the five weeks to January 5.
Zavvi relocated its head office this month following the management buy-out. The 90 members of head office staff have transferred from an office in London’s Brook Green to a 12,000 sq ft space at Horatio House on nearby Fulham Palace Road.
Zavvi was bought from founder Sir Richard Branson in a management buy-out led by Douglas and finance director Steve Peckham last September. It has 125 stores in the UK and Ireland and 2,500 members of staff.
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