Waikato Herald
  • Waikato Herald home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Locations

  • Hamilton
  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Matamata & Piako
  • Cambridge
  • Te Awamutu
  • Tokoroa & South Waikato
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Weather

  • Thames
  • Hamilton
  • Tokoroa
  • Taumarunui
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Waikato News

Final credits for Te Awamutu's last DVD store

Bethany Rolston
By Bethany Rolston
Te Awamutu Courier·
5 Feb, 2018 08:42 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Movie HQ owner Kay Hanna says its the customers she'll miss the most.

Movie HQ owner Kay Hanna says its the customers she'll miss the most.

The last DVD rental store in the Waipa is closing its doors for the final time.

Te Awamutu's Movie HQ, formerly Civic Video, is owned by Cambridge woman Kay Hanna.

She says the decision to close was financial — she could not compete with online movie streaming and Netflix.

Kay's not alone — the collapse of DVD rental stores is rapidly sweeping the nation.

Civic Video has 20 outlets remaining in New Zealand, according to its website.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Cambridge's Civic Video, the last DVD store in Cambridge, closed in 2016.

Video Ezy has 10 outlets left in New Zealand, down from a peak of 130 stores in 2008.

United Video has 29 outlets, down from 104 in 2011, according to general manager Lindsay Hall.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

With two weeks left until she shuts up shop, Kay is now tasked with selling 20,000 DVDs.

The final day will likely be February 20, but it depends how the sale goes, she says.

Kay and her husband Grant purchased Civic Video 14 years ago.

At the time they were one of three booming video rental stores in Te Awamutu alongside United Video and Video Ezy.

Discover more

Te Awamutu woman slashes more than $450,000 of debt

18 Jan 07:57 PM

Shakespeare in the Park returns to Te Awamutu

23 Jan 07:20 PM

New Ohaupo Sport and Recreation Centre in the pipeline

06 Feb 07:27 PM

Te Awamutu's Pop 'n' Good Bike Park ready to open this month

07 Feb 07:36 PM

The farming couple was looking for an additional business — somewhere for Kay to work while Grant farmed.

"We liked the idea of people being entertained, and us not having to sell a product."

Kay says for the first 10 years it was a very good business and they bought out Te Awamutu's Video Ezy in 2008.

DVDs were quickly filling the shelves and all videos were sold by 2009.

In 2014 the store stopped contracting through Civic Video and changed to Movie HQ.

When Grant passed away suddenly in 2014 Kay moved from their farm in Kaipaki to Leamington.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

In recent years she has worked at the store five days a week.

Te Awamutu's United Video closed two years ago and since then Movie HQ has ruled the DVD rental scene in the Waipa.

But over the last several years Kay has seen a sharp decline in customers and, as a result, the demand for staff.

In November 2015 she served 2311 customers and in November last year she served 1311.

Over the years she's employed around 25 staff.

"We used to need three staff members on a Saturday because it was so busy," she says.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Now we only need one person and they get bored."

Reflecting on the 14 years of business, Kay says it's the customers she'll miss the most.

"I've loved watching people come and go over the years and seeing children grow up."

She says the store has filled a gap for people without access to other entertainment.

"I feel sad for the people who don't have the internet — what will they do now?

"Most of the customers are confused and disappointed."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Longtime customers Bronwyn and Richard Tiddy say they were sad to hear of the store's closure.

"It was one of our family traditions to go down and choose a movie. Now we will need to improve our movie-watching skills."

University of Waikato Screen and Media Studies research associate Geoff Lealand says the closure highlights the rise of digital media.

University of Waikato Screen and Media Studies research associate Geoff Lealand says the closure highlights the rise of digital media.
University of Waikato Screen and Media Studies research associate Geoff Lealand says the closure highlights the rise of digital media.

"The simple way to put it is that we now have new platforms," he says.

"We've moved from hard copy to virtual."

Geoff, however, believes there is still a place for the DVD.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"People who are looking beyond the mainstream can still find DVDs

"Speciality stores still exist — like Auteur House in Hamilton and AroVideo in Wellington.

"There's something special about having a tangible item that you can treasure and share with others."

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Waikato News

Waikato Herald

K9 team partners in crime-fighting

Sport

Floyd Masson takes out John Parker for IBF Pan Pacific title

Waikato Herald

Police seek witnesses after man assaulted while walking with wife


Sponsored

Revealed: The night driving ‘red flag’

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Waikato News

K9 team partners in crime-fighting
Waikato Herald

K9 team partners in crime-fighting

Scott and Chip's role involves tracking offenders and supporting frontline police and AOS.

05 Aug 05:00 PM
Floyd Masson takes out John Parker for IBF Pan Pacific title
Sport

Floyd Masson takes out John Parker for IBF Pan Pacific title

05 Aug 03:39 AM
Police seek witnesses after man assaulted while walking with wife
Waikato Herald

Police seek witnesses after man assaulted while walking with wife

05 Aug 02:03 AM


Revealed: The night driving ‘red flag’
Sponsored

Revealed: The night driving ‘red flag’

04 Aug 11:37 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Waikato Herald e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Waikato Herald
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP