Sanity deal kills off V.Shop format

Virgin Retail is to sell 41 V.Shop stores to music retailer Sanity in a deal understood to be worth approximately£2 million. The agreement is the final nail in the coffin of the V.Shop fascia.

The entertainment retailer has already converted 18 V.Shops to the new Megastore Xpress fascia and is planning to convert a further 37 by the middle of this month.

Megastore Xpress offers a larger back catalogue range than V.Shop, as well as specific location-tailored ranges, and is seen by Virgin as offering the potential for significant growth.

In stores already converted from V.Shop, sales have increased around 30 per cent year-on-year.

According to the retailer, the change will mean that Virgin Megastores, with 167 shops, will have more UK stores than any of its specialist rivals.

Virgin Retail managing director Andy Randall said: 'The Megastore Xpress stores have worked really well for us and we want to roll them out as quickly as possible. The move means that we now have one business and one brand.'

Sanity bought 77 Our Price stores from Virgin in October last year and the latest acquisition confirms it as an emerging player in the music and entertainment market.