London’s final DVD rental store that outlived Blockbuster closes doorways after two vehicles smash into window

The finish of an period has come about with the closure of London’s final DVD rent store in Forest Hill. Gulam Charania ran his store, referred to as For Your Eyes Only, for 25 years – outlasting Blockbuster by over a decade and supplying DVDs to the celebrities of London in addition to locals.

The store closure happened as a result of it has been hit by blow after blow, fairly actually in some instances. Two vehicles smashed by the store’s frontage on two separate events, most not too long ago final summer season which meant the shop needed to shut for a harmful three-and-a-half months.

Combining this with the pressures of the pandemic and the rise in on-line streaming and piracy has meant it’s time for the ultimate credit to roll for Orpington resident Gulam’s store.

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“This retailer was a neighborhood hub,” he mentioned, boxing up stacks of DVDs. “I’ve had just a few individuals coming in actually, actually upset that we’re closing. I’ve seen individuals who have moved out of the world come again through the years simply to reminisce and say, ‘I’m so glad you’re nonetheless right here’.

“All the households used to come back in, it was sensible.”

The video retailer stocked over 11,000 DVDs, Blu-Rays and video video games and boasts actors comparable to Stephen Graham – who as soon as lived simply down the street from the store – Con O’Neill and Hugo Speer amongst its extra well-known prospects.

The unhappiness Gulam feels after locking-up for the final time on in the present day (Mondau November 13) will take a while to get better from. “I’m holding it collectively, however I’m going by a kind of melancholy,” he admitted. “This is the tip of an period. That’s it.

“I’ve had some nice occasions right here and bought to know numerous individuals. Now I’m going to need to discover a job.”

The father-of-two and grandad-of-four opened the doorways of his retailer – believed to be the final video rental retailer in London and one of many final within the UK – again in 1998, having been impressed by his love of movie.

“I like the movies of the 80s and 90s,” he defined. “Your Rambos, Star Wars. It’s simply CGI now – it’s inferior to it was once. But there are nonetheless good movies being made.”

Business was booming within the previous days Gulam mentioned as he batted off buyout gives from trade juggernauts like Blockbuster which he got here to survive. He spoke about what it was like again then and the way occasions have modified.

He mentioned: “Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights individuals would queue out the door. It could be heaving. Now I see children ask their mums once they go previous, ‘What’s a DVD store?’. They don’t know.”

He added: “Now, far fewer individuals have DVD gamers. But what occurs in case your web goes? You’re stuffed.”

Streaming providers like Netflix have affected the trade of DVD rental however not as a lot as piracy has the lifelong Chelsea fan mentioned. Many individuals criticise the rising costs of Netflix, Gulam mentioned, which has meant they haven’t had as thorough an affect as piracy which he mentioned severely decreased his buddy’s DVD rental store when it grew to become extra widespread.

A GoFundMe web page was arrange by supporters in March this yr after the information unfold that For Your Eyes Only could also be pressured to shut its doorways once-and-for-all – although Gulam had nothing to do with it. He says the £2,300 it raised helped him pay the payments for just a few months, however that his ever-waning buyer base meant his enterprise was not sustainable.

Gulam added he hopes DVDs might experience a wave of nostalgia and make a comeback in future, very like vinyl records have.“You by no means know,” he mentioned.

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