Comments
Comment: Fox’s Record (& Tape!) Centre in Alfreton, Derbyshire was very dear to me. I went to school in Alfreton (Mortimer Wilsons! - also long gone) and there were often more kids in Fox’s than there were in the classrooms!
The shop was nothing special, but had a nice atmosphere and you always knew where everything was. Fox’s sold records, tapes and 8-tracks in the 1970s when I discovered it, got in early with CDs a decade later, and also rented out a nice selection of video cassette films. You can see these on the left side of the picture. This isn’t my photo, but it’s the only one I could find. I’m guessing from the Whitney Houston album in the window, this was from 1987.
Fox’s closed its doors in 1993. Alfreton isn’t a big town, but by then WH Smith’s, Woolworths and Boots all sold records, tapes and CDs and they couldn’t compete. Wish I could find more pictures... The shop is as clear as a bell in my mind’s eye, but that’s not much use to anyone else.
Name: Simon Greenwood
Comment: Fox's in Doncaster was my record shop of choice as a teenager in the early 1980s. The first singles I bought were Holiday 80 by The Human League and Messages by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark on 10". Fox's also had musical instrument shops in Doncaster (across the Arndale from their record shop) and Sheffield (which also had a small record section). I believe they also had a store in Hull.
(2019)
Name: Chris Hardy
Comment: Chas. J. Fox (Piano) Co. Ltd or simply Fox's as it was known locally also had a record shop (separate musical instrument shop next door) in the Galleries at Washington, Tyne & Wear, from the late 1970s until sadly closing in the middle of 1982. I worked there for the last year of it operating with the best group of people I ever worked with. Phred, Big Chris, Little Chris and Donna. Best job I ever had, even if crap money lol and I'd go back to those days in a heartbeat!
(2021)
“CHAS J. FOX Record Centre, Victoria Centre, Nottingham, Tel: 44222, requires a Sales Assistant. Prior experience desirable but not necessary. Five day week. Salary negotiable.”
“FOX'S RECORD CENTRE, Arndale, Doncaster. Fantastic Sale of POP/CLASSICAL DELETED L.P.s from 10/- each. Hurry while stocks last!”
What I do remember about Fox’s is that they jumped on board with VHS video rental very early. 1981, I think. I seem to remember this was why the shop was extended. They did very well with videos for a few years, until everyone else started renting them out too! In a way, it was the start of the end for Fox’s. As the first poster says, by this time Woolies and WH Smith were chipping away at their customers by selling records and CDs too.
All very sad. Fox’s didn’t have the best location in Alfreton either. Stuck in Rodgers Lane and kind of out of sight from the main shops. I still miss Fox’s and its staff.