One of Ipswich high street’s most popular shops is preparing to move into a new home at Sailmakers shopping centre.
The Tavern Street HMV store, which has been at the heart of the town’s shopping district for decades, will soon move to the Upper Mall of the former Tower Ramparts.
The store will move into two units, currently occupied by department store Baldwins, who will themselves make the short trip downstairs to a double-sized unit in the Lower Mall.
The move is set to take place on Monday, January 8 , with shopfitters ready to move into the units the following day to transform them into a single shop for HMV.
The new-look store is set to open in February.
Mike Sorhaindo, manager of Sailmakers Shopping Centre, described HMV’s move as a ‘big coup’ for the centre.
He said: “It’s a great Christmas present for us to have such a major high street retailer as HMV coming here and increasing the retail mix as well as adding to the attractions on our Upper Mall.
“HMV is a long established household name which has undergone a resurgence in recent years and we’re delighted to welcome them here.
“It’s a big coup for us and it strengthens our offer, particularly with younger customers, and also makes Sailmakers an even more attractive proposition to other big name stores and that can only be good for the town and the local economy.”
HMV has seen a recent revival, linked with the return to popularity of vinyl records.
Sales were up 37.6% to £37.3m this year, led by Suffolk’s own Ed Sheeran.
HMV has sold up to a third of all LP sales in the UK this year.
The retailer, which is the last surviving high street music chain with 132 stores, expects to sell 1.5m records this year – more than the entire album market in 1994.
The news of HMV’s move to Sailmakers follows hot on the heels of the opening of Oriental fast food outlet Chopstix just last week.
The HMV move comes two years after the centre’s £4 million renovation and rebranding as Sailmakers.
Since then it has created well over 100 new jobs and boosted the local economy by more than £2.5 million.
No one from HMV was available for comment on the store’s move.
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