In brief
- Miniso has secured the lease for HMV’s Oxford Street flagship store
- The 19,000 sq ft site will become the chain’s first UK Miniso Land, with immersive Harry Potter and Barbie zones
- HMV will vacate in March after calling the store “commercially unsustainable”
- Savills acted for a private landlord; financial details have not been disclosed
- Miniso, founded in 2013, now runs more than 8,300 stores worldwide
Chinese lifestyle retailer Miniso has secured the lease for HMV’s landmark Oxford Street store and will turn the 19,000 sq ft site into its first British Miniso Land — an immersive flagship built around pop-culture collaborations including Harry Potter and Barbie.
The deal, struck just days after HMV announced it would quit the shop, was secured by Savills acting for a private landlord. Financial details of the letting have not been disclosed.
HMV said this week it would vacate the store in March, describing the site as “commercially unsustainable” after being hit with a substantial renovation bill alongside plans to nearly double its rent.
Staff at the Oxford Street branch are being transferred to the chain’s two other London shops and its head office while it searches for a new site in the capital.
End of a short second act
The letting closes the book on HMV’s brief return to the street. The music chain made a celebrated comeback to Oxford Street three years ago, but the revival has been cut short by spiralling property costs — as London Streets reported this week.
For Miniso, the move plants its flag on one of the world’s most famous shopping streets. Founded in 2013 by billionaire Ye Guofu, the Chinese retailer has grown to more than 8,300 stores worldwide, with flagship sites including New York’s Times Square and the Champs-Élysées in Paris. It opened its first UK shop in 2019.
The company has built its following on affordable, design-led lifestyle goods sold through bright, densely merchandised stores — a formula it is now scaling up into large destination flagships.
What is Miniso Land?
Miniso Land stores are the chain’s large-format, experience-led flagships. Rather than conventional aisles, they are organised around immersive themed zones tied to licensed characters and franchises — designed to be photographed and shared as much as shopped in.
The Oxford Street branch is expected to follow that template, with dedicated areas for ranges such as Harry Potter and Barbie sitting alongside the retailer’s everyday offer, which stretches from Hello Kitty soft toys to electronics, stationery and beauty products.
Oxford Street is no stranger to wizard-themed retail — the UK’s largest official Harry Potter shop arrived on the street earlier this month.
By the numbers
- 2013 — Miniso founded by billionaire Ye Guofu
- 8,300+ — stores worldwide
- 2019 — first UK shop opened
- 19,000 sq ft — size of the Oxford Street site
- March — HMV to vacate the store
How we got here
- 2019: Miniso opens its first UK shop
- 2023: HMV returns to its Oxford Street flagship
- 13 October 2026: HMV announces it will close the store, blaming a planned near-doubling of rent and a substantial renovation bill
- 16 October 2026: Miniso secures the lease, with plans for the UK’s first Miniso Land
- March: HMV to vacate; Miniso Land to follow
What it means for Oxford Street
The deal is the latest sign of how quickly Britain’s most famous shopping street is changing hands. Landlords are increasingly backing experience-led retail over traditional shopfronts, and Miniso’s arrival continues a run of entertainment-driven openings on the street.
It also lands just as the street prepares for its biggest physical change in a generation — the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street begins on 26 October — which is expected to reshape footfall along the mile-long stretch.
Sam Foyle, Savills’ co-head of global retail, acted for the private landlord on the letting.
