Ontario-based Sunrise Records and Entertainment Limited might have just purchased 100 HMV stores across the UK, but don鈥檛 expect the brand to pop up in Canada again.

Sunrise owner Doug Putman told The Canadian Press on Wednesday that it is 鈥漸nlikely, but definitely possible鈥� that he would resurrect the brand in Canada, where 102 HMV stores were shuttered in 2017.

Instead Putman, who also runs toy and game distribution brand Everest Toys, revealed his focus will be on broadening HMV鈥檚 offerings to combat the rise of streaming giants and the decline of CDs and DVDs.

He said shoppers can expect to see fan-based merchandise, including board games, toys and licensed T-shirts, and mused that he鈥檇 be open to partnering with artists to do 鈥渃reative, different things.鈥�

鈥淲e have to get a handle on the market and what is happening here, but we know we want to add a lot of vinyl to the mix,鈥� he said in a call from the UK. 鈥淰inyl has been doing great.鈥�

His confidence in vinyl comes amid a resurgence in the medium. Vinyl sales rose more than 21 per cent last year to hit 975,000 units, according to Nielsen Music Canada.

However, there have been some setbacks.

Calgary-based business Canada Boy Vinyl, one of the country鈥檚 only pressing plants, closed about two years ago, not long after it opened.

More recently, Concord, Ont.-based RPM Distribution, Canada鈥檚 largest distributors of vinyl records, shut down, leaving some retailers scrambling to find alternate suppliers and raising concerns about potential rises in prices.

However, Putman is undeterred and noted that vinyl has played a role in his rebuild of Sunrise, a business he bought from Malcolm Perlman in 2014, when Sunrise was down to five stores.

Putman said the business has spread to 85 locations 鈥� mostly in suburban malls, in former HMV spots 鈥� and he anticipates it will keep growing, 鈥渋f we find the right locations for the right rent.鈥�

Despite stories of an increasingly difficult music retail environment, Putman is convinced he can buck the trend with both Sunrise and HMV, which was said to be losing $100,000 a day when it was in operation in Canada.

Putman moved Sunrise into 70 of the locations HMV was vacating and managed to make Sunrise profitable in the first year he owned it. It has remained profitable, he said.

鈥淲ho doesn鈥檛 like to prove people wrong?,鈥� he said. 鈥漌e know there is an ability to make money at this. When you can do something you love and it makes money, those are great things.鈥�

Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press

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