It must have been a relief for HMV workers when it was announced this week that Hilco had tossed the retailer a lifeline, much as it was for Blockbuster when Gordon Brothers Europe stepped in with a last minute reprieve. But to this old sceptic it’s just a stay of execution. Question marks still hang heavy over many of our national stores, and the only winners in this story will be plywood sheet makers. So when the last of our high street stores have boarded up their windows the only question left will be did we give enough of a damn?

 

 

Skip forward twenty years and you’ll find yourself having a conversation with someone a generation or two below you, espousing the virtues of physical shopping. You’ll tell them of the benefits of having a large library of art, music, movies, and literature all at your fingers tips, there to perus ... Read more »