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BLOCKBUSTER once had 9,000 stores and was a billion pound company – but now there is only one left worldwide.
Sarah Harding, 51, has been managing the last holdout of the beloved video rental store for nearly 20 years.
And her store looks just as it did back in the move market’s 90s heyday, with aisles stacked with films, movie posters, and shelves well stocked with sweets & popcorn.
The store located in Bend, Oregon, became the only Blockbuster still standing in March 2019.
Movie fans were left heartbroken as the chain shuttered the 49 remaining franchise stores.
It ended decades of beloved family trips to pick up VHS tapes, DVDs, and sweet and salty snacks for a big night in.
Streaming services cannibalised the rental store and left the company with no choice but close down.
At its peak in 2004, Blockbuster had 9,094 stores worldwide with more than 500 here in the UK.
But somehow, the store in Bend has managed to survive – becoming a place of pilgrimage for film buffs and those craving a little hit of nostalgia.
And meanwhile, the internet is abuzz after Blockbuster.com appeared back online with a teasing message.
It sparked rumours of a potential return, sharing a cryptic message: “We are working on rewinding your movie.”
But as of publication and sadly for movie fans, the link now appears to be dead once again.
Sandi told The Sun Online she is certain the chain is preparing “something fun” for those who crave a bit of 90s nostalgia.
While she says she is not aware of the company’s plans she speculates the brand could return – potentially with a streaming service.
“We were Blockbuster all the way through the heyday of Blockbuster,” she told The Sun Online.
“We don’t know what this is about either but we are excited to see what they are up to.
“I’m anxious to see what’s going to happen hopefully it will be something good.
“It wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing to see a couple of stores open up.
“We got people coming in and talking about the nostalgia and how much they miss it and that it’d be nice to see another store opening.
“So it’d be nice to know we helped maybe weave out the things a little bit.
“I would be surprised if it’s another store. I have a hard time believing the old model is going to work as well as it did in the 90s.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a kind of streaming service or something else they could use the name just so can people have the experience whether it’s virtual or something fun like that.
“I think people would still be excited to see the name back up there.
“We are happy they’re doing something and were looking forward to see what it is.”
The store was opened by Ken and Debbie Tisher in 1992 and was turned into a Blockbuster in 2000.
Since becoming the last Blockbuster in the world the store has been turned into a popular tourist attraction.
It has between 10 and 15 members of staff depending on the time of the year and has managed to survive thanks to tourism and merchandise.
It seems as if time has frozen in the last Blockbuster as it oozes the same 90s vibe it did at its peak.
Discussing the challenges of keeping up with times, Sandi explained they had to get creative in order to get the business afloat since streaming services emerged- despite having regular customers.
Sandi said: “People usually say how excited they are to come and see us.
“The store looks exactly the same, you walk in and get that Blockbuster feeling, we haven’t really change anything. It all looks exactly how it was in the 90s.
“There’s not a lot of need for rental and some people don’t even have DVD players in their homes anymore so it’s definitely a struggling business as far as the rentals go so we are fortunate to have the nostalgia piece and have the tourism and the T-shirts and our website now- without this we wouldn’t be able to survive.
“We’re just trying to keep that going for as long as we possibly can.
“We try to do fun things to remind people we’re still here.”
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