It's official: Oregon can claim the last Blockbuster store...in the world
OAKLAND, Calif. (KTVU) - From 9,000 locations down to only one.
The Blockbuster ‘video store’— a term pretty much not even heard of these days, in Bend, Orgeon is now the last of its kind [full stop] IN THE WORLD.
Shocking, we know. But after the second to last Blockbuster stopped renting movies Thursday in Australia, there were reports the location ‘down under’ would shutter for good at the end of the month. Until then they’ll be selling their inventory right down to the store’s fixtures in one of those total liquidation sales.
The chain, founded in 1985, is a relic of the past, which perhaps peaked in the ‘90s, but fans of making it “a Blockbuster night”, as the slogan goes, will forever be nostalgic for its blue and yellow polo-shirt, khaki-pant clad clerks and their smiling faces. Not to mention the relative ease of roaming the carpeted aisles for a finite amount of viewing options, whether it be Blue-Ray, DVD or VHS for long-time diehards.
The Oregon store still has about 4,000 card carrying members with active accounts. They sign up a few new accounts each day. Some are tourists who travel out of their way to see what it was like to schlep across town in a car, not be overwhelmed by digital streaming platforms and its endless options (we’re looking at you Netflix, Hulu and Amazon among others) and actually touch physical media. That or they’re taking a trip down memory lane.
A good portion of the Oregon store’s income comes from selling merchandise related to being the last Blockbuster. Last fall we reported it became the last Blockbuster in the U.S. when Alaska locations closed.
Streaming be damned!