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HMV sold more than 40,000 Michael Jackson albums in the three days after his death - far outstripping the sales leap it experienced after the deaths of Elvis Presley and John Lennon.
"Friday sales were up 80-fold," said chief executive Simon Fox. "We had the albums in the shops because they were starting to sell ahead of his planned tour. But following his death his Number Ones greatest hits shot up from 121 in the charts to top place.
"Across the industry we reckon something like 125,000 Jackson albums have been sold."
But it was the death of High-Street rivals Woolworth and Zavvi which helped HMV to forecast-busting profits last year.
It picked up 25 former Zavvi shops from the receiver.
Even more so it grew its market share picking large chunks of the two defunct retailers. HMV sales now account for one in every three albums sold in the UK.
Fox is now two years into his three-year turnaround plan and analysts today said he was producing results faster than his original targets.
In HMV stores he has pushed sales of games, consols and MP3 players up from 14% to 24% of total revenues.
At Waterstones 2.8 million customers have signed up for the bookseller's loyalty card rather than Fox's original target of 1.5 million.
An HMV loyalty card has been launched in the last two months.
Fox has also taken HMV into several new ventures including gaming arcades, a trial with Curzon of a multiplex cinema at the Wimbledon store, a joint venture under the Mean Fiddler banner to run 11 gig venues including the Hammersmith Apollo and a partnership with mobile firm Orange.
Pre-tax profits rose 11.5% to £63 million in the year to 25 April on sales up 4.4% at £1.96 billion.
On an underlying basis sales at HMV stores were up 1.9% and those at Waterstones were off 3.8%.
Looking ahead Fox said the book market had shown signs of recovery in May and June and he is optimistic about autumn sales with new titles from Robert Harris and Martina Cole in fiction, comedy from Harry Hill and Jeremy Clarkson and Ozzy Osbourne's autobiography.
In music the likely big seller for Christmas is the first collection of digitally remastered Beatles albums while in games Modern Warfare II will be big.
The dividend is unchanged at 7.4p a share.
Reader views (5)
I stand corrected! Well I hope HMV can expand into those areas, or maybe supermarkets like Sainsbury's can take up the Music/DVD cause and create some jobs out there.
- Clive Morris, London
The death of Woolworths helped out HMV? Whoever bought records at Woolworths in this day and age?
- Clive Morris, London
Clive, you obviously don't have children. We bought the majority of our childrens records at Woolies as did most other fellow parents that I know. Woolies was a teenage free zone which was perfect for youngsters to go and browse thru all their records and video games
- Lancet, London
Clive, HMV have been in London for many years certainly before Elvis died, but as one major flagship store in the West end. Re Woolies selling records, for many this was the only outlet of music in the towns they lived, mine included in Essex. Now we have nothing.
- Steve, London
Erm, surely HMV was hardly around at the time when John Lennon or Elvis died? I don't remember it, although Virgin Megastore existed on Oxford Street where there is now a tatty bracelet store.
So I'm not sure about comparisons. Ironic however, that Jacko could have done with these megasales before he died to help him out of his financial black hole.
The death of Woolworths helped out HMV? Whoever bought records at Woolworths in this day and age?
- Clive Morris, London
Michael Jackson was the last true megastar of the vinyl era; no one will ever sell as many records again in this new age of downloads, piracy and iPods. You could say he was the high watermark of record sales globally. Where are today's megastars?
- Neil, London, London UK
