Zavvi finally wound-up

Defunct entertainment retailer Zavvi will be finally wound-up by the end of this week after a company led by former chief executive Simon Douglas signed a deal to buy all remaining stock and eight stores.

The company, called Head, will continue to trade the stores, which include outlets at Bluewater shopping centre in Kent, the Liverpool One centre and the Arndale centre in Manchester, using the Zavvi stock and “other sources going forward” according to administrators

High street entertainment retailer HMV has also bought a further four Zavvi stores, taking its total to 19 after its earlier haul in January. The stock sale means the remaining 18 stores and 446 employees will now be closed.

The chain went into administration on Christmas Eve, after a month of difficult trading after its main supplier Entertainment UK followed sister company Woolworth’s into administration in November.

It had recently appointed The7Stars to handle its media planning and buying.

The Zavvi group was the UK’s largest independent entertainment retailer selling DVDs, CDs and games. It was formed after a management buy-out of the Virgin Group’s Virgin Megastore division in September 2007.