HMV chief resigns over Christmas sales

IT may not have been a merry Christmas for HMV but Argos and the Carphone Warehouse remained steady.

HMV chief executive Alan Giles said he was stepping down as the music and books' store reported disappointing sales over Christmas.

Mr Giles has been chief Executive since 1998 but will retire from HMV in December this year.

The announcement came as the company reported a 5.5% fall in like-for-like sales at its HMV stores in the five weeks to January 7, while like-for-like sales at Waterstone's were down 2.4%.

HMV also announced that former IBM UK Chairman and Chief Executive Carl Symon will succeed David Kappler as Chairman.

Yesterday's half-year results and Christmas trading update was the first since September when HMV reported a sharp dip in summer sales and they warned of a gloomy outlook for the rest of the year.

HMV was boosted by sales of Eminem and Robbie Williams albums, while the Lee Evans XL Tour 2005 Live DVD also performed well.

Also, retail group GUS hailed the festive performances of Argos and Homebase, even though both businesses failed to grow sales over Christmas.

In line with other retailers, GUS said more shoppers were prepared to use the internet to secure their presents.

Carphone Warehouse who reported a strong Christmas after connections lifted 33% on a year ago and it continued to build its TalkTalk service.