Defunct Record Shop in Hanley / Stoke

HermanMunster

HermanMunster

HermanMunster

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11 Nov 2015
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OK old people, what was the name of the independent music shop in Hanley that was around about 30 - 40 years ago. It used to sell concert tickets too.

My old brain can't remember, and it's driving me mad!
 
Not sure but you mike be talking about Mike Loyd Music. (MLM) Used to be about halfway down Brunswick street. Think it eventually got bought out by Virgin. I can remember buying tickets from there in my yoof.
 
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Feek said:
Not only will he know, he probably knew the owner, played in a band with him, went round the shop every day and encouraged people to buy from him. And went to see Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin and Slade with him multiple times. Am I right, Dimps, am I? :D
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You're not far off, that was Legendary Lonnie who owned a shop in Stoke Town Centre.
I went to many gigs with him and one of them was Slade on their comeback tour and I did play in his backing band.

Blood Lloyds was owned by Terry Blood and Mike Lloyd and to be honest I didn't know them but a lot of their staff went to the same school as me.
They broke away from each other and during 87/88 I worked in Mike Lloyds subsidiary shop called Lotus on a Saturday selling Heavy Metal records.
That shop now has another name still selling concert tickets.

Mike Lloyd had a warehouse in Stafford because I used to go up there labelling albums.
If the code said 0320 it meant they had paid £2.30 for it and put a hefty profit on it in the shop.
 
This has set me to thinking what Hanley has lost over the years.
I can remember what it was like pre-potteries centre. We had Bratt & Dyke's department store and the old Lewis's where the potteries centre is now and it was huge. There was a C&A (dont think they exist anymore) There was Tungs which was a fantastic camera shop down where the cultural quarter guff is now. The old ABC cinema. Goes without saying it lost a large Woolworths when they went to the wall. Back in the day Hanley was a reasonable place to go shopping with lots of quirky little shops that were worth a look in and free parking. How times have changed. It's been on a downward trend for decades to what it has become today which is basically just a dump.
 
DampDog said:
There was Tungs which was a fantastic camera shop
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I had a date with one of Tungs daughters when I was about 15, I was a complete failure :)
They had a big house in Dresden.

I tried to buy some binoculars off him so asked to try them to look at the hotel over the road - "You go out the door you buy them".
I threw the money on the counter started to walk out with them but he still wouldn't let me.
I said "If I run off you've got the money" but he wasn't having any.
 
Is the Games Workshop still there?

I remember going there when I was about 10 years old, so 30 odd years ago. I think the potteries was there then though.

I don't remember it being too bad then, I have been back, I want to say about 6-7 years ago and yea, looked like things had declined quite significantly.

I remember Longton not being too bad, but **** me what a **** hole that place has become.
 
SexyGreyFox said:
I had a date with one of Tungs daughters when I was about 15, I was a complete failure :)
They had a big house in Dresden.

I tried to buy some binoculars off him so asked to try them to look at the hotel over the road - "You go out the door you buy them".
I threw the money on the counter started to walk out with them but he still wouldn't let me.
I said "If I run off you've got the money" but he wasn't having any.
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Yeah, he was very... Is "oriental" the word for it? :cry:

I doubt there is anyone in the country of a certain age who hasn't seen a huge decline in town centres. It's a shame for those growing up and thinking is this as good as it gets?
 
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Grew up around Hanley in mid/late 80's and it was a "great" (for the area) place back then, always some hustle and bustle with packed shops everywhere and the newly opened "Potteries Shopping Centre" bringing a huge buzz to the town - I left Stoke in the mid 90's but pop back once/twice a year to visit family who still live "Up 'Anley Duck!" and it's such a shame to see how far the old economic heart of Stoke on Trent has fallen from what I consider to be its heydays!

I also used Mike Lloyds religiously to buy Metal/Rock LP's and Gig tickets advertised on those small "index cards" pinned to a notice board or shown in the window - again all long gone now.
 
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ianh said:
I also used Mike Lloyds religiously to buy Metal/Rock LP's and Gig tickets advertised on those small "index cards" pinned to a notice board or shown in the window - again all long gone now.
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If you used Lotus in 87/88 I might have sold those rock records to you.

A little story.
One day the Manager called Hawk asked me to make some Whitesnake 1987 packs up but hadn't got a clue what he meant.
He said take every media that has been released for the 1987 album - the four different coloured covers, the picture disc, the CD, the cassette, the different versions of the single that has been released etc and add up the total price, make as many full packs that you can.
I honestly wondered who was going to buy it and by 1pm I'd sold all 20 of them and had to start making more :eek:
A few weeks later he asked me to do packs for a new Kiss album and all those sold.
 
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I used to work for a retailer that had a branch in Hanley. It was always at least 10x our figures. In our mind Hanley was this dead posh place where the wealthy went to spend big.
 
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