Popular music store Hong Kong Records will close its outlets in Pacific Place and Harbour City after 29 years in business, following three years of steady losses.
“There is no future in the industry,” said store owner Siu King-chin.
The shutdown marks an end of an era for Hong Kong’s once-thriving music trade and a setback to physical music shops throughout the city. The industry has been throttled by the rise of music streaming and sharing services in an environment where copyright control has also been challenging.
Siu’s first music store opened in Pacific Palace in 1989 as a 200sqft outlet named Do Re Mi before expanding to a total of three locations covering 20,000sqft of store space under the Hong Kong Records brand. His stores predated and survived the entry and departure of industry giants HMV and Tower Records, (although HMV has since returned in a new lifestyle format).
Siu noted that around 20 employees will lose their jobs, while the business’ 4000 loyalty customers will be affected by the decision. He has yet to decide on how to dispense with the more than 10,000 CDs, DVDs and vinyls in stock.
