About Us

  • Sunrise Records is a proud Canadian record store chain, founded in Toronto in 1977. Sunrise Records quickly became one of the five major record store chains in Canada, alongside HMV Canada, Music World, Sam the Record Man, and A&A Records. 

 
 
  • In October 2014, Sunrise Records chain opened new locations, expanding to 9 within Ontario. Three years later after HMV Canada announced that it would be closing its doors for good, Sunrise Records acquired the leases for 70 HMV locations and converted them to Sunrise Records stores, making an effort to retain as many former HMV employees as possible. Record labels had become concerned by the closure of HMV because there was now no prominent location to stock their physical product. As Universal Music Canada president Jeffrey Remedios stated, "[record stores] are a community hub where passions are shared, art is explored, and lasting journeys begin." 
  • Of the converted stores, Sunrise planned to stock a larger and broader array of music in comparison to HMV, including larger selections of vinyl records and music by local independent artists, as well as expanded offerings of music and entertainment apparel and merchandise. 
  • In February 2019, Sunrise Records acquired HMV Retail Ltd. — the HMV chain's British parent company — from Hilco UK, with intentions to continue operation under the HMV branding while maintaining a focus on pop culture merchandise and vinyl records.