Attention to Retail

I would start this entry with an 'illustrative' picture of a woman in Ann Summers lingerie, as seems customary in the media when reporting on this retailer or for that matter any lingerie retailer or even such an unprepossessing subject as permitted use of warehouse space (EG 04/08/07 for the original article with helpful photographic example). But I won't, for I think the story can speak for itself without such gratuitousness. Also the security settings at the office don't let me look at the Ann Summers site (and I'm not going to google for pics after the fallout from the "Ronald McDonald" + "sex pest" search).

Developments afoot in the hedonistic, drug-fuelled rollercoaster that is rock'n'roll. Rock'n'roll retailing, that is.

Virgin has sold the Virgin Megastore chain to a management buyout team called Zavvi Entertainment Group for an undisclosed sum. The total sum paid is not the only question remaining - Who has funded the buyout? What's their strategy? (Zavvi has already announced plans to open new stores in Liverpool, Belfast and Bristol over the next year.) Will they continue to push towards selling more DVDs and computer games, reducing their reliance on physical music sales? What is the future for download service Virgin Digital, set to be rebranded? I have no idea, but it will be interesting to see if Zavvi's expectations match the sales reality.