Virgin Megastores videogame sales up 111.9 per cent

Virgin has announced Q4 financial results for its Virgin Megastores retailers, reporting growth of 11.5 per cent over the same quarter last year.

The company indicated that videogame sales had increased 111.9 per cent, far outpacing growth in the sales of other media. DVD sales were up 18.1 per cent and fashion sales increased 35.1 per cent.

"It is the second consecutive year that sales have way exceeded our expectations," said Simon Wright, CEO, Virgin Entertainment Group, North America.

"We started seeing positive results in 2006 from our diversification strategy and the sales in those departments continued to climb throughout 2007. Virgin Megastores are being recognized as an entertainment lifestyle destination, rather than solely a music retailer."

The US chain of Virgin Megastores has launched a new retail website, even as the company has been closing stores throughout the country. There are now only 10 stores remaining in the US, four of them in California.

"We're trying to reposition the business," Wright told the LA Times, "and a lot of our stores are too big for the future, primarily due to the drop in music sales."