Fopp

Fopp nowadays should be named Flopp-its a real let down lately. Every album I have asked for of late has not been in stock and not ordered, there seems to be an attitude of not caring about what the customer wants, I was even offered a chance to order the album. it was a case of try elsewhere!I wouldnt mind but this is not a band they dont already stock the old material so it was surprising they had no interest (nor awarenessness of the two new products just released) Wont be going back!

Fopp is a high street chain that specialising in selling CD’s, DVD’s and books. They used to have a number of stores across the UK a few years ago but they went bust and closed all their chains. Thankfully HMV have come along and bought and resurrected a few stores including the London Cambridge Circus outlet.

Where Fopp has an advantage over competitors is with it’s consistently cheap pricing. You can always pick up a bargain with many brand new CD’s, DVD’s and books being sold for £3.00. With a stock rotation policy that shuffles things around regularly there is always something new on offer.

The selection is big given the size of the stores. Before they shut they did have a huge one on Tottenham Court Road in London that was a music lovers paradise. Unfortunately HMV have not re-opened this one but the Cambridge Circus outlet is very good.

Staff tend to be friendly, knowledgeable and helpful baring the one exception when I went last weekend and asked whether they had Lawrence of Arabia and was greeted with confused perplexion. That incident aside, they are usually very good.

My only slight grumble is that given the size of the stores and the wish to pack alot in, it can be hard to move around. The displays are good and show off well the bargain items but they also tend to be in areas where you walk through to get to other departments and can lead to bottlenecks. This aside, this is always my first stop music shop in London for it’s consistently cheap pricing.

Got to love Fopp – I remember when they had a larger store near Goodge St. but it closed down. So thankful this branch managed to re-open as they have the cheapest prices for DVD, Blu-Ray and CD around. Plus they have a great range of titles (Mainstream, World Cinema etc). Best thing? Their staff are friendly and know what they’re selling.

I used to buy new music every week and part of that was going to the record shop to discover artists I hadn't heard before. HMV and the like are just a turn-off. Long live Hi-Fidelity and the like.

I love Fopp. I remember when this place first opened. its amazing and cheap.

I remember the dark days when Fopp almost when bust, but seeing it still flourishing in this part of town does warm my cockles - especially since we came so close to having to rely on the likes of HMV for high street book, CD and DVD buying.

I know it has its haters, I know cheap chains like Fopp and online retailers like Amazon are probably damaging sales at independent businesses, but for thrifty souls like me, their small stores and low prices are perfect for a poke around on the way into town.

Although it can get claustrophobic and the stock isn't always in immaculate condition, this is one of my favourite options when I need a film or music fix. Long may it reign, and fingers crossed it doesn't go the way of Virgin or HMV any time soon.

Great place to pick up currently popular CDs at bargain prices. Has a fantastic foreign film selection. The staff tend to know their stuff as well.

This place is great some many things for cheap! I have got some real classic films here for my collection. Real bargins!!!

Essential shopping stop in this part of town - the DVD section downstairs is my personal favourite. The place to come to pick up those artsy foreign films you need to add a touch of sophistication to your action movie collection, and perhaps stock up on Peep Show series while you're doing. Not as vast a selection as, say, the HMV on Oxford Street; just a whole lot more fun.

As a frequent visitor to the UK, I always enjoy shopping, but was unfamiliar with Fopp, until I ran across its Covent Garden location on Earlham St. I could have filled several sacks with books & cds, but alas, I had strict limitations on my baggage weight allowance, and limited myself to one cd. When I return to London at the end of the year, Fopp will be one of my first stops .

Fopp was always the place that you left clutching a sackful of cd's and books that you never planned to get. You just, er, did! It was so cheap that you could experiment & this meant a lot in the days before dodgy downloads. I remember I got 'Forever Changes' and 'whatevershebringswesing' for a fiver! If they had been fifteen pounds each I'd not have taken the chance in the first place.....their pricing led to experimental buying and that led to new aural experiences. Thanks guys. How sad it went pop(p) a few years ago. Strangely, the 'music-in-our-DNA' cheese monkeys at HMV kept this one open....fair dues, the Suits got this call right! It is an essential part of any visit to town even now.

Always a great place to visit (Must have the best hit rate when it comes to converting browsers to buyers - almost never leave with nothing) Last trip saw 7 CDs bought for £21

Thing I like most is that they stock stuff you won't get elsewhere (at least not at these prices!). 2 Cocteau Twins albums and a compilation of Martin Hannett produced songs among the 7 mentioned above

For the serious music fan, accept no substitute

Not sure who comes up with the "Nearest tube station" advice on here. Wouldn't fancy walking from Vauxhall!!

Fopp for me always brings back memories of being a student in Sheffield and popping along to their little store and coming out brimming with purchases to dent my student loan (but not too much because it was so cheap)

When they went bust the other year (after a rather ill-advised aqcuisition of Music Zone) it was a sad day. This store remains, (under HMV stewardship) and while still a great shop doesn't quite have the same feel to it.

Maybe I'm just over spending hours browsing through bits of plastic for music when I can listen to it streaming through spotify for nothing and make a decision to buy or not from the comfort of my desk. Maybe I see the future of record shops going down the route of RTE or Pure Groove and being a cafe/bar/live music spot with the occasional bit of music to buy rather than the other way around.
Either way, I'm glad it's still there, but I fear it won't be for that long (and you can say the same about HMV)

The funky Fopp store in Covent Garden has become a destination for me.

They stock great music, books and DVD's at incredible prices.

No matter how little time I have to browse I always seem to come away with something worthwhile.

Love this store and so glad it has survived.

It’s something of a consolation prize that the Fopp at Covent Garden is still standing. It was rather tragic to lose the one chain that actually made records and other merch affordable. But that there is still the one shop in London means that you can drop by with a tenner and walk out with any combination of cheap CDs, DVDs or books. And they always have the most random assortment of books laid out on the table, whether it’s the latest rock’n’roll biography or Tony Hawks’ most recent escapades.
With most of the chain shut down, the Covent Garden Fopp is no longer just another record store, it’s now a destination.

The day the Fopp chain went bust was a day of loss and misery which rivalled the day that 'Opal Fruits’ were shamelessly recast as 'Starburst’, luckily though Fopps demise was not as catastrophic as there are still a few stores around including this fine example in the West End.

As with all Fopp Stores it is well stocked with the kinds of music, films and books that could help you live for months in a nuclear bunker without suffering from the 'blues’ too badly (and even if you did, you’d have the best soundtrack for them) and at a price which won’t break the bank.

With regards to what you’ll find where, the basement houses the majority of the films and books, the ground floor is where you’ll find the more popular merch like chart films and cd’s and the big offers with the top floor playing host to the best and most diverse collections of cd’s you’ll find in any remotely chain-like store

This funky dvd and cd store on the corner of Shaftesbury avenue opposite the Cambridge Theatre currently has an awesome sale on, meaning you can pick up many top dvd’s (The Darjeeling Limited, Borat, Blood Diamond) for just £3. It’s phenomenal. I mean, that’s cheaper than renting them. It also has a really good selection of interesting music and off-beat foreign films (take a look at the wonderful ‘The beat my heart skipped’). It’s also a much nicer experience than being crowded out in HMV on Oxford Street, with its open, glass windowed-feel, so I would heartily recommend popping along to fopp for your entertainment requirements.

I’m a great fan of Fopp and was greatly saddened when they went bust last year, thankfully hmv saved a few of the stores including this one in Covent Garden. This is one of the best stores with a large selection of CDs and DVDs over 3 floors. Most things are reasonably priced with chart CDs around £10. The best thing about Fopp however, is their cheap CDs, they usually have a good selection at £3 or less and you can pick up some real bargains. The stores are simply laid out so its easy to find what you want and a pleasure to browse around.

Fopp in Covent Garden is one of the last remnants of the superb Fopp chain of record stores which ran into financial trouble in 2007. HMV resurrected some of the shops (though sadly not the fantastic flagship store on Tottenham Court Road), of which this is one. Happily, HMV seem to be taking a very-much hands-off approach and the store presently has pretty much the same feel to it as in the ‘old’ days. For the uninitiated, this means a Tardis-like interior with a varied selection of CDs, DVDs and books, many of which are offered at bargain prices. It’s the sort of place where you can happily browse for hours and is head-and-shoulders above most (if not all) other high street record stores. Needless to say, the staff are friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. The only small gripe would be the prices of the more expensive back catalogue items, but I guess that helps to keep the place afloat. For the canny music (or indeed book or DVD)-lover there are many bargains to be had.

The best thing about Fopp is the great selection of rare to find independent label releases and 'cred’ music. Of course they sell chart stuff, but in the main they sell music you would have a hard job finding in any of the major chains. For that alone, hurrah for Fopp!