JB Hi-Fi marketing manager Jon Kirman said Friday’s opening was always planned to be a "soft opening" to provide the opportunity to check all the systems were operating correctly and for the staff to familiarise themselves with the store.
"It was great to open the doors this morning with a queue of people out front."
The store was supposed to open in December, but as the store was not ready, a decision was made to postpone it until January.
"We wanted to make sure everyone who came in had a really good experience.
"A lot of people I’ve spoken to are really excited we are bringing music and movies back down to Invercargill."
There were not a lot of stores selling music and movies any longer, he said.
Taylor Swift albums had been the most popular vinyl sale, but reproduced classics were also being swooped up to be added to private collections.
"It’s a real collector’s base.
"Some people will end up buying vinyl, they might not even have a record player, they just want to just physically hold it, look at the album artwork — as a bit of a collector’s item."
Store manager Tony Keay said he was "ecstatic" with how the first hours of trade had gone.
"It’s just come up trumps in my opinion. The team are on fire and the customers have shown up."
Customers had shown a particular interest in the store’s vinyl collection, with a steady flow of people scouring through the store’s vinyl and movie collections.
"It’s quite incredible to see the ages that were buying vinyl.
"Mums and dads and everyone in between are collecting again, putting it on the shelf and appreciating the music itself.
"I just can’t wrap my head around — you’ve got the latest Taylor Swift album and have The Beatles getting reprinted and everything in between ... there’s no age on it. It’s quite incredible they are all getting into it."
Mr Keay said the 25 new staff were coping well with the influx of customers.
- By Toni McDonald
