Virgin Megastore Trumpets Game-Related Success

Author: by Staff

As part of a release announcing buoyant sales for the 2007 fiscal year, the U.S. division of multimedia retail chain Virgin Megastore has revealed an impressive 93.9% increase in sales of game hardwre and software. This announcement echoes successes such as GameStop's record $7 billion revenue haul for 2007, which saw sales increase by 33 percent to a record $7.1 billion, with a 24.7 percent increase in comparable store sales. According to Virgin, the entire fiscal year of 2007 was a strong sales year for the Virgin Megastore chain, which also sells records, books, and many other electronic items. The stores were up 11.5% nationally since last year on a same store basis, and up more than 10% in the New York City market alone. The chain's five largest stores have had double-digit growth over last year, with the Orlando Virgin Megastore up 24% and the West Coast flagship in Hollywood up 21%. Partly due to the launch of the new game consoles, it was also notable how much greater the game market percentage increase by revenue was, over and above other markets - with DVD sales up 13.9%, fashion sales up 35.5%, and books up 19%. "Virgin Megastores are being recognized as a lifestyle entertainment shopping destination, rather than solely a music retailer," explains Simon Wright, CEO, Virgin Entertainment Group, North America. "This is our second consecutive year that has produced sales that have exceeded our expectations. We attribute this success to a shift in our product offering, an increase in our marketing strategy and a new focus on e-commerce."